I've had the good fortune to have played Oakmont multiple times and find, although plenty difficult, it is the fairest and most fun course with a high degree of architecturally and condition-presented difficulty. Unlike a Butler National, a Rich Harvest Farms, or a Shattuck
, Oakmont is a joy to play.
It is a course the genuinely enforces a defensive mind-set. If this thread's author deems it insane to approach a five-foot putt with an iota of aggression than it is he who fails to truly understand the nature of this beast.....nary the opposite. Oakmont makes no pretense to be "gettable," nor does it suffer fools. Its members share a common bond in laughable sadism when hosting guests, yet quietly go about treating it like their everyday playground. One of my best memories was playing with a former club champion and watching him shoot an effortless 33-35. He knew where to go and where not to and once we abandoned our own stubborn eyes, the rest of us managed good scores by surfing his wake.
Unlike Flynn at Shinnecock, Fownes must've known there would be windless days to contend with to maintain adequate defenses. Heat and humidity are no fun anywhere and the Steel Valley is no exception. No caddy uniforms, nor towel-wetting agents for this place
The course may revel in its relentless and stout resistance to scoring, but the club's welcoming nature is a but a doppelgänger to its field of play. Few private clubs in the US with this kind of rich tradition make their guests feel so at home and at ease. The clubhouse creaks with both history and accessibility. The Swat books are an archive of the club's camaraderie. The Rolling Rock or Steel City taps are icy cold and always flowing.
Oakmont is 100% American and an example of a place that won't change much in the next century, no matter what tweaks are made. Its members are inducted first as stewards of its institution, and golfers second.