No. 2 is No. 1 Again

By: Dave Droschak

[Editor's Note: Cybergolf's Dave Droschak is in Pinehurst for the 114th U.S. Open. Here's Dave's third report.]

In what has been a long and hot week of golfing glory at one of the game's iconic settings, a security guard greeted me with a "have a nice day" as I made my way to the course on the final day of what turned out to be four rounds of Kaymer Kudos.

I did a double-take. There is Southern hospitality and then there is Pinehurst, a walking village set apart from the rest of the golfing world as we know it. Maybe that's way there is such a love affair between its famed No. 2 course and the United States Golf Association.

What other place can scrounge up 6,400 "paying" volunteers to work two weeks in the heat, holding up signs for fans to be quiet or putting ropes up and down at dusty fan crosswalks?

The USGA is correct about one argument they will hammer you over the head with - there is no "official rotation" of Open venues. With now three Opens accomplished in striking and seamless fashion - and one more to come next week when the women take center stage - within the last 15 years, Pinehurst has set itself above that "fictitious" pecking order, opening itself up for additional marriages with golf's governing body.

"We're operating at a very high level right now," said incoming Pinehurst Resort President Tom Pashley, who will take over the resort's reins in October, said Sunday in an interview with Cybergolf. "Coming off the restoration of the course, which has received glowing reviews, coming off the first-ever back-to-back Opens, expectations are certainly high. We want to continue to challenge ourselves to lead, to innovate, to grow and to continue to provide wonderful, gracious hospitality to our members and guests."

There were plenty of "guests" on hand this week as more record-setting crowds lined the waste areas and sandy carts paths of the No. 2 Course, filled the bleachers and pulled up a greenside chair to get a glimpse of their favorite star. Pinehurst tends to unfold itself for viewing splendor unlike any other U.S. Open championship settings.

"I was excited to be stepping into this new role prior to the U.S. Opens, but after seeing all of the excitement and the hundreds of thousands of people who have been here it has just renewed my enthusiasm for moving forward and continuing to stay on top," Pashley said. "We're blessed to be highly regarded now and we want that to continue to be special to the golfing community."

Until recently, only Pebble Beach Golf Links and Pinehurst Resort were U.S. Open locations that normal hackers like you and I could set up shop and try to replicate our favorite pro's moment of glory.

That has changed some with Torrey Pines, Bethpage Black and now Chambers Bay next year in the fold, but the allure of any golfer being able to tee it up and play Pinehurst No. 2 is beyond appealing, and makes the Open here more engaging to the average 15-handicapper.

The U.S. Amateur Four-Ball Championship heads here in 2017, and then likely another Open at the first available date. My best guess is that USGA officials are waiting to see if the historic Open doubleheader is a huge hit, and if so, Pinehurst would become the "unofficial site" for such upcoming golfing spectacles.

"We've told the USGA we would love to have them back as soon and as often as they would like to return," Pashley said.

With more than 550 golf courses, North Carolina is a blueblood golfing state. And no piece of that pie has a bigger appetite for the game than Pinehurst.

"The town really seems to embrace it," said Bill Haas, winner of the 2011 FedEx Cup. "This IS a golf town. I you live here, you know golf is a part of your life."

"It's pretty impressive the amount of people who were out here watching golf," added Rickie Fowler. "It's pretty cool to be able to play in this environment. And walking up 18 has a little bit of a feel of the British Open with the big grandstand. The fans have just been awesome."

Pinehurst No. 2 hosted a PGA Tour event from 1973-1982, and for the first year was the richest event on Tour. And while many of the old timers often ask me why Pinehurst isn't a yearly stop (it would be perfect) on Tour, the economic reality is it's just not going to happen. The high season for the resort is March-May and September-October and, as Pashley says, "we've got a core business we've got to operate. That wipes out a lot of that discussion."

And at this time, frankly, the resort's partnership with the USGA is vice-grip tight.

And Pinehurst also has a wildcard in the fight, so to speak, in Reg Jones, a former resort executive who's in charge of buttoning up all of the logistics outside the ropes for the USGA. Jones often refers to U.S. Opens at Pinehurst as "a home game." And there really has been no need to step up to the plate in the bottom of the ninth at any of its three Opens so far.

"We're fortunate enough to just be able to tweak it every time," Pashley said. "Reg knows this area like the back of his hand. If traffic and transportation goes well then everybody gets here in better mood, happier, so you are off to a head start."

"And perhaps the hospitality here is infectious," Pashley added when asked about volunteers greeting patrons at every turn. "It is so fun to welcome people to this community, to this storied place. People talk about how they just feel at peace here, how their blood pressure drops. We just want to continue to show more and more people our beautiful lifestyle that exists in Pinehurst."

As the sun sets on another Open at No. 2, the church bells chiming off in the distance, and the lime squeezed over some Grey Goose and tonic as one sits on a white rocker . . . Ahhhhh.

David Droschak has covered golf in the Carolinas for three decades, mostly with The Associated Press, where he worked for 20 years as AP sports editor in North Carolina prior to launching Droschak Communications, a full-service marketing and PR firm based in Apex, N.C.

Dave, 53, has covered numerous major golf tournaments, including the 1999 and 2005 U.S. Opens at Pinehurst Resort, and is a longtime member of the Golf Writers Association of America. Dave will represent Cybergolf to provide coverage of the historic back-to-back 2014 U.S. Men's and Women's Opens at Pinehurst No. 2 in North Carolina's Sandhills.

Dave was honored with the Sports Writer of the Year award in North Carolina in 2005, and is currently editor of Triangle Golf Today (www.trianglegolf.com), a print and online publication regarded as the "No. 1 Source for Golf News in North Carolina." He is also golf editor for Pinehurst Magazine, an award-winning glossy publication.

Dave grew up in Penn Hills, Pa., about five minutes from famed Oakmont Country Club and was introduced to the game of golf as a caddie at Green Oaks Country Club in nearby Verona, Pa. Dave was the co-captain of the 1978 Penn Hills state championship baseball team, was a pitcher for the 1982 Atlantic Coast Conference champion University of North Carolina Tar Heels, and pitched professionally for two years in the St. Louis Cardinals organization. He is a member of the Penn Hills High School Sports Hall of Fame, which also includes NBA coach George Karl and former four-time Pro Bowl offensive lineman Bill Fralic.

Tweet