South Africa’s Oliver Bekker is ready to deal with the challenges presented by Erin Hills when the 117th US Open begins on Thursday, writes WADE PRETORIUS.
Bekker will be making his Major championship debut in Wisconsin and spoke to Compleat Golfer after his first practise round at the venue.
‘Yeah, it was definitely an interesting experience to go out there for the first time,’ said Bekker.
‘The course is very, very long to walk so there’s that added physical element to playing here. It is something like 2400 yards from green to tee in between holes.
‘As you’ve no doubt read, the rough is quite thick but there is a lot of space because the faiways are quite wide.’
Key to performing well this week will be sticking to the game plan of keeping the ball on the right lines with many of the fairways playing blind off the tee.
‘It was pretty windy out there as well so you need to trust your line and make a good swing. The forecast is for constant wind this week so it’s not going to be easy.
‘There aren’t any trees out there but between the sloping greens, the fescue rough and the wind there will be enough challenges to defend the course.’
Bekker was one of four South Africans who booked their spot in the 117th US Open via sectional qualifying but after wins at the Zambia Sugar Open and Lombard Insurance Open, the 32-year-old is ready to tackle the challenge of Erin Hills and the world’s best players.
‘I am feeling good about my game and I have played really well recently, so I am just going to try keep that going and also make time to enjoy the whole experience. I think that if you can do that then you should probably have a decent week.’
Bekker is off at 12:30 (US time) on Thursday from the 10th tee alongside Wade Ormsby and Kyle Thompson.
Bekker also shared some pictures of the course taken during his first practise round:
