Mike,
Is it too late to "educate the masses", or do they even want to be "educated". I agree that it would be great if some one would talk about the program and why it has been the right decision for Oakmont, but don't you think so many people have their preconceived notions of what a "US Open" course should be--long, narrow, w/lots of rough. And in case of places like Oakmont or WF lots of trees.
Dale,
It's a slow educational process, to be sure, but one that is gaining momentum.
Anyone who has seen Brad Klein's extremely educational and pointedly humorous presentation on "trees" knows that there is inescapable $en$e and practical logic in the idea of not letting our courses become overgrown.
Yet, for every Oakmont or Merion, or Manufacturers, there are others that add trees, or permit continued overgrowth, which is why the recent ANGC example is so damaging.
It's also why it would be so terrific for a bellweather course like Pine Valley to pick up the pace aggressively on their own tree management program. Right now, I'd say despite some positive intentions, it's nowhere near where it should be to recover all of the architectural greatness of what Crump and Colt built.
I played an old Willie Park course yesterday that is awfully overgrown, so I think I'll start a new thread to further expand on some of the challenges we clear-cutters face.