It measures just 330 yards on the scorecard, but the par-4 6th at the Los Angeles Country Club may prove as the trickiest hole during the 2023 U.S. Open.
U.S. Open: LACC’s tricky little 6th hole will puzzle the field
The drivable par-4 6th hole at the Los Angeles Country Club is unlike any other hole in professional golf.
Jack Milko has been playing golf since he was five years old. He has yet to record a hole-in-one, but he did secure an M.A. in Sports Journalism from St. Bonaventure University.
From the tee, players have no visual of the green but are immediately given a choice: to go for the green or to lay up.
If players opt to go for the pencil-thin putting surface, they will have to hit their tee shots directly over a short, fat tree on top of a hill.
Others will lay up and have plenty of room to the left to do so.
“I think there’s going to be a lot of different strategies there.” Collin Morikawa said in his pre-tournament press conference. “Some guys are going to feel comfortable going for it and taking what they got with any lie, and some guys are going to lay up knowing that they’re going to have a wedge in their hand.”
Jon Rahm feels that players who lay up away from the green complex will have an advantage.
“I think if you hit the lay-up to the spot you want to every day, which isn’t the hardest lay-up, I think your scoring average will be lower than going for it every day,” Rahm admitted. “That will be my belief just because you don’t have much of a margin of error.”
Players will need to have a carry of at least 300 yards to reach the putting surface.
The green complex is tricky as a deep bunker guards the front portion of this green while another sand trap protects the back side. Deep, whispy, and gnarly rough—some of the most unpredictable on the golf course—surrounds the green.
“If you hit a shot and try to hit the green you can pull it two yards left and find yourself in a really tough lie next to the bunker in that rough,” Rahm added.
For those laying up, players have 295 yards down the left side before the fairway runs out. Any tee shot that carries at least 240 yards beyond the tree on the corner will give players a terrific angle into the shallowest green on the course.
The green itself slopes off the back, but two tiers exist: one on the right, the higher side, and a lower level on the left. A slope in the middle of this green funnels shots towards the left side, the thinner half of this green.
John Wood of the Golf Channel did an excellent job on Live From the U.S. Open detailing this short par-4:
What do you think players should do on this tricky hole? How would you play it? Comment below and let us know.
