Swing Thoughts - Open Doors

By John Ehle

With the GMO/U.S. Bank Championship a distant memory, the recent announcement that Erin Hills will host the 2017 U.S. Open Championship has been sweet news for golf fans in the metro area. The Jemsek family at Cog Hill is as nice a group of people as one might meet in any business and Frank Jemsek knew months ago that the fact that the phones weren't ringing in LeMont did not bode well for his Open candidate, Dubsdread.

The complicated nature of these decisions is beyond those of us who are among the unconnected but one has to ask how the third or fourth largest population center in the country is passed over so frequently. With the Western Open now hopscotching around the country, the fickle nature of these awards becomes even more apparent when one considers the Olympic jilting that Chicago also recently suffered. Bad karma left over from 1968?

A recent one-pager in Golfweek probably shed more light on the writer's ego than it did to reveal how Erin Hills emerged with the 2017 Open but it warrants some discussion.

Yes, Bob Lang started his project in Erin with the intention of building a 9 hole course for his employees and the eventual inclusion of the USGA's finest mind (Mike Davis) propelled the project beyond Bob Lang's wildest dreams.....too far beyond, actually. Just maintaining 654 acres much less grooming it in unimaginable ways is beyond the ken of most but it must, eventually, be visualized and grounded by a single leader. That was Bob Lang.

Dr. Michael Hurdzan told me many months ago; "Bob Lang is the architect at Erin Hills. Make no mistake about it." The eventuality was that Lang ran out of dough and in an "aha" moment realized that what was needed was an owner with greater resources than he. People like Jeff Rottier, the course's first superintendent, did an exemplary job of growing in the first rendition of wall-to-wall fescue but moved on when the children began to arrive and his life was no longer his own. Many others made important contributions to the evolution of the course but sweat and will alone were not sufficient to get it done.

Enter Andy Ziegler. A man with great resources and the will to pick up the gauntlet was what was necessary and Mr. Ziegler did it. The Open was in place and all that was necessary was to insure that the final touches could be put on what is possibly the finest piece of golf land that was left on this side of the Atlantic.

Visitors to Erin Hills the last couple of years often intoned their feeling that the metro area doesn't have the capacity to handle the hospitality and rooming needs of Open attendees but my rejoinder was always the same: what about the enormous successes that Herb Kohler and his organization have shown and the continuing interest in that property as a tournament venue? They depended on Milwaukee for rooms and meals and the policing organizations were miracle workers as far as getting fans to and from Haven, WI with no less than ideal efficiency.

Anyone who attended the 2007 Senior Open had to have been impressed with how smoothly everything happened:even the extrication of the unfortunate fans who suffered sprained and broken ankles.

Next month's PGA Championship will be the latest in the continuing series of big tournaments hosted in Wisconsin. The economic boost to the community has been far beyond an increase in local pride. The 2004 PGA Championship brought in 300,000 fans; resulting in a $76m infusion which included $46m. out-of-state dollars. Projected economic effects of $200 m. may not be out of line for the 2017 U.S. Open at Erin Hills. Hole in one!
And it is not only reflected in the dollars that are expended during tournament week. According to local owner Frank Romano there is a "bandwagon effect" which elevates general interest in golf and increases the number of rounds played in the state. People who come in from out-of-state bring their clubs and courses like Fire Ridge, the Bog, the Bull and, of course, the Kohler properties can experience full tee sheets and additional revenues because of fan activity.

Like the attractiveness of having the thirsty legions of Badger fans at bowl locations, Wisconsinites are known for being among the country's most attentive golf fans. Only 70,000 fans can see a Packer game at Lambeau Field but 2 million follow the game on television. Bandwagon.

Wisconsin's stature as tournament central in the future can be best understood by examining the following list of events.

2011 U.S. Men's Amateur; Erin Hills
2012 U.S. Women's Open; Blackwolf Run
2015 PGA Championship; Whistling Straits
2017 U.S. Men's Open; Erin Hills
2020 Ryder Cup; Whistling Straits

There's nothing quite like being there.

Revised: 06/29/2010 - Article Viewed 540 Times

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