"The distance elite players are hitting the ball hasn't fundamentally changed the balance of skills that lead to good scoring."

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John Paul Newport makes the case above--distance gains have not fundamentally changed the game--and I'm not sure if this was the best week to write this story after a soft Plainfield looked completely overmatched by modern equipment (a stunning 31 players finished in double digits under par for 54 holes while the winner was 19-under for 3 rounds).
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"To say it was one of the best match in the 116-year history of the competition would be hyperbole, but it certain was entertaining."

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Without television covering the finish, most of us were left to track the all-star U.S. Amateur match between UCLA's Patrick Cantlay and Georgia's Russell Henley via Twitter, and based on the accounts and enthusiasm, it was one for the ages.

Ryan Herrington with some of the highlights:

* Over the course of 21 holes, the two made 13 birdies and two eagles, offset by just four bogeys.

* Three different times they halved holes with birdies, the two shooting matching 68s before going to extra holes.

* Just three times all day did a par win a hole.

"It was the craziest match I have ever been a part of," said Cantlay, a 19-year-old from Los Alamitos, Calif., who'll start his sophomore year at UCLA next month. "If you told me all that stuff would have happened the way it did, I wouldn't have believed you."

Sean Martin said the emotions of the match were summed up by the sight of the normally stoic Cantlay fist-pumping, as caught by J.D. Cuban's camera (above).

Cantlay’s run at Erin Hills looked like it was going to end Thursday. He was 2 down with two to play after Henley holed a 16-foot birdie putt on the par-3 16th. Both players came up short on the par-4 17th. Cantlay holed his straightforward chip, and Henley was unable to match.

Henley found trouble with his tee shot on the par-5 18th and had to hack out of the fescue. Cantlay had just 6-iron for his second shot, two-putting from 20 feet to extend the match.

When Cantlay won the 21st hole, it was the first time he led the match since the fourth hole.

Randall Mell said it was a heavyweight fight.

Walking to the 11th tee, Henley’s nose started bleeding. He looked like he needed a cut man more than a caddie. He played five holes with a napkin stuffed into his right nostril.
“I got hit in the nose twice in high school playing basketball and ever since, when it gets dry, it seems to start bleeding,” Henley said.

This match was everything it was hyped to be even if it felt as if it came too early in the week as a second-round showdown.

Friday's Round of 16 includes another standout match: Cantlay vs. England's Tom Lewis. Bill Nichols notes that in the final 16 are defending champion Peter Uihlein and Dallas's Jordan Spieth.

Erin Hills Longest Course In USGA History Even Though Distance Increases Have Stabilized Since 2003

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The USGA released the course info for next week's U.S. Amateur and announced that Erin Hills is the new back tee yardage champion!

RECORD YARDAGE: For the second consecutive year, the U.S. Amateur will be the longest course in USGA history. At 7,760 yards, Erin Hills surpasses the 7,742 yards played at Chambers Bay at the 2010 U.S. Amateur. Chambers Bay had overtaken the South Course at Torrey Pines Golf Course in San Diego, Calif., which measured 7,643 yards for the 2008 U.S. Open, and 2006 U.S. Amateur host Hazeltine National Golf Club in Chaska, Minn., which measured 7,473 yards.

And this is fun:

PAR AND YARDAGE: Erin Hills will be set up at 7,760 yards and will play to a par of 36-36–72. The companion course, Blue Mound Golf & Country Club, will be set up at 6,622 yards and will play to a par of 35-35–70.

Gene Sarazen won the 1933 PGA at the Raynor-designed Blue Mound which is a whopping 1000 yards shorter than Erin Hills, yet par is 70 to Erin Hills' 72.

Check out the yardages:

The front nines at the two courses have a 600-yard differential, but only one-shot to par difference?

Blue Mound has a 492-yard par-5, while Erin Hills has four par-4s over 490.

The back nine at Erin Hills weighs in a 3,939, with a 675-yard finishing hole.

Now, recently the USGA's Mike Davis has been known to not ever come close to setting up a course to its maximum yardage and he's to be commended for that.

However, in the Tee It Forward era, we see a second consecutive year of a record-length golf. Granted, 7700 yards falls withing the Tee It Forward guidelines for a PGA Tour player. However, this confirmation of today's driving distance acumen is worth noting since both the USGA ("stabilized") and R&A ("surrounded") insist average distances haven't spiked since 2003.

"I predict that we're going to see this summer, Erin Hills ends up being long term, one of the great championship courses in the United States."

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Tip of the cap to Ryan Herrington for Tweeting this two minute U.S. Amateur preview video of Erin Hills, host this year and of the 2017 U.S. Open. It ends with the above (bold!) quote from Executive Director Mike Davis.
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For Your Cleansing Consideration: 2011 Women's Amateur At Rhode Island CC

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If the that whole virtual reality looking thing in Atlanta is too EA Sports for you, don't forget they've reached match play at the U.S. Women's Amateur at Donald Ross's ultra cool Rhode Island Country Club. Besides being one of the really neat places in the game with a pure golf spirit, great USGA championship history and beautiful setting, it provides a welcome contrast to Atlanta Athletic Club.
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Amateurs Overtaking The Nationwide Tour!

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Joe Chemycz with the lowdown on amateurs in the first two spots of the Nationwide Children's Hospital Invitational heading into Sunday and a third in the top ten.

LSU's John Peterson birdied three of his final five holes and maintained his lead after three rounds at Ohio State University's Scarlet Course. Peterson's 14-under 199 total is one shot better than college rival Harris English of Georgia, who carded a bogey-free 68.

"We had our college stuff on and it was just the two of us out there together. It really didn't feel like a professional tournament," said English, dressed in his red Bulldog shirt. "We were joking on the range that we thought our college coaches were going to show up at some point, and they still might."

You may recall amateur Russell Henley won earlier this year on his home collegiate course.

Oakland Hills Officially Gets '16 U.S. Amateur

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It was reported last week by Tim Twentyman of the Detroit News and now the USGA makes it official:

OAKLAND HILLS COUNTRY CLUB SELECTED AS SITE OF 2016 U.S. AMATEUR CHAMPIONSHIP

Far Hills, N.J. (July 20) – Oakland Hills Country Club, in Bloomfield Hills, Mich., has been selected by the United States Golf Association as the site of the 2016 U.S. Amateur Championship. The dates of the championship are Aug. 15-21, 2016.

The North and South Courses will be used for stroke-play qualifying and the South Course will be used for match play.

“The USGA is very excited to return to Oakland Hills for the 2016 U.S. Amateur Championship,” said Thomas J. O’Toole Jr., chairman of the USGA championship committee. “To have the opportunity to conduct the U.S. Amateur, our oldest championship, at a club that has hosted six U.S. Opens is truly special. Many historic golf moments have occurred at Oakland Hills and we expect the 2016 U.S. Amateur will add to that history.”

The 2016 championship will be the second U.S. Amateur and 11th USGA championship to be hosted by the club. The 2002 U.S. Amateur, won by Ricky Barnes over Hunter Mahan, was the most recent USGA championship at the historic layout designed by Donald Ross.