US Open hopeful brands Oakmont greens “Mickey Mouse”

One of the more illuminating hopefuls in this week’s US Open field has drawn a divided reaction after labelling the Oakmont greens “Micky Mouse.”

It would not be a US Open without a prevailing narrative surrounding course conditions, with Jhonattan Vegas claiming earlier in the week that the five-inch rough at Oakmont “unplayable.”

But Michael Kim, who is known for providing a unique professional insight on social media, instead caused a stir by focusing on the notorious green complexes at the Pittsburgh layout.

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“The greens here feel a bit Mickey Mouse,” Kim wrote on X. “The slopes, the weird sections and overall slopes are just way more than we’re used to.”

Kim added that the greens at Augusta National are “pretty benign” compared to these putting surfaces.

“Augusta has big sections but if you get into those sections, the putts aren’t bad,” he added.

“It’s similar at Oakmont but way tougher to get to that section because of the rough and the contouring of the green.”

The other problem, of course, is that these greens are going to be lightning fast.

It is a quirk to this venue that the greens, often running above 15 on the Stimpmeter for members, will actually be slowed down a touch to make them playable for the world’s best players.

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Depending on weather conditions, the greens are expected to play between 14 feet, five inches and 14 feet nine inches on the Stimpmeter come Thursday’s opening round.

Kim, a one-time winner on the PGA Tour, also wonders whether one of the most popular green-reading techniques will be redundant on these sloping surfaces.

“Idk (I don’t know) how guys doing Aimpoint express will do it here because certain putts are going to break so much,” he said. “Not enough fingers for some of these longer downhill sliders.”

The American added: “In order to test the worlds best players these days especially at a US Open, in the ways that most want, you need a lot of what Oakmont has.

“The winner will be putting on a ball striking clinic. There will be zero of scrapping it around to get a score here.”

Ben Parsons is the Senior Writer at bunkered and is the man to come to for all of the latest news, across both the professional and amateur games. Formerly of The Mirror and Press Association, he is a member at Halifax Golf Club and is a long-suffering fan of both Manchester United and the Wales rugby team.