"Lang had taken Erin Hills and his dream of an Open as far as he could take it."

Matty G on the Erin Hills change of ownership:

When I was there over two months ago, before Ziegler bought Erin Hills, the course was in bad shape. In several spots the landing areas were a mess. The rough--burned down and reseeded--wasn’t growing back. I’ve played a lot of U.S. Open venues; Erin Hills, even if it was in perfect shape, didn’t strike me as a course of that caliber. But more important former owner, Bob Lang (pictured above), told me that day that he had run out of money. Which is why I wasn’t surprised to find out he sold the course a month later. “It’s not easy for me,” says Lang, “but there’s a sense of relief because I don’t have to keep finding money.”

On Oct. 24, for a reported $10.5 million, Lang put the future of Erin Hills into the hands, and deep pockets, of Ziegler. Lang had taken Erin Hills and his dream of an Open as far as he could take it.

This was interesting:

Ziegler’s doing so by increasing the maintenance budget, building a state-of-the-art maintenance shed, purchasing the proper equipment and increasing the size of the crew. The 10th hole is being converted from a par 5 to a par 4, which will reduce total par from 73 to 72. He’s addressing a drainage issue on the 17th, and architects Mike Hurdzan and Dana Fry have begun doing away with some of the 103 bunkers that were added in the last 10 months.

103 bunkers in 10 months? Really?