2024 U.S. Open course: Five things to know about Pinehurst No. 2, Donald Ross' best-ever design

Pinehurst No. 2 will test the best golfers in the world this week at the U.S. Open

The USGA recently made Pinehurst No. 2 one of its primary sites to host men's U.S. Opens for the foreseeable future (and unforeseeable future). U.S. Opens are slated to be played at the famous course in North Carolina in 2024, 2029, 2035, 2041 and 2047. Rory McIlroy will be 58 years old in 2047. Borrowing from what he learned growing up on the links of Dornoch, Scotland, Ross made the crowned green his trademark. He was a detail man who took great patience to make sure every slope and break met his approval. All his bunkers looked like they hadn't been built at all, but had been made by the hands of nature. There is a seamless, timeless quality to Donald Ross golf courses that required very little earth-moving to construct. What I found more impressive than the severity of the runoffs at the edges of the greens, however, was the intricate contouring of the short-grass surrounds. 

The intimation is clear: Pinehurst No. 2 is a golf course worthy of the nation's championship. It would be difficult to argue otherwise. The Donald Ross design, which sits among nine other courses at the Pinehurst resort, has stood the test of time and remains one of the crown jewels in this country. It's also one of few old-school golf courses big enough and difficult enough to challenge the best players in the world. Pinehurst No. 2 is a perfect example. Water comes into sight on only one hole, and it is not in play. The course is not particularly long, the rough is native sandscape and wire grass, and it is almost impossible to lose a golf ball. Yet any golfer who goes around close to his or her handicap will have had a good day. On the first hole, for instance, there are two closely mown mounds just below the ledge on the right side of the green. When players miss right, their ball will not only kick right but also potentially end up in a fiddly lie on the side of one of the hummocks. These kinds of details lend variety and complexity to Pinehurst No. 2's short-game test.

Pinehurst No. 2 has hosted a PGA Championship, a Ryder Cup, the Tour Championship, three U.S. Amateurs, the U.S. Senior Open, the U.S. Women's Open and now its fourth men's U.S. Open this week.