Shane Lowry holes out from 160 yards for eagle at US Open

For Shane Lowry, it was a bit of history. That’s the first time it’s been recorded that the third hole at Oakmont has so much as given up an eagle. He did it when he desperately needed some life in his game.

Prior to that, Lowry and shown some visible frustration on the course. That included throwing a microphone in frustration just a couple of holes prior as he’s battled the difficult course. So, he needed the eagle to potentially turn around his US Open hopes.

This is the 10th time that Oakmont Country Club has hosted the US Open. The first time came back in 1927 with Tommy Armour winning in a playoff. The most recent time it hosted, 2016, Dustin Johnson won his first major by three strokes. Over the years, it’s developed a relationship for being one of the toughest courses out there. Scottie Scheffler, the current world number one golfer, shared his concerns over its difficulty going into the US Open.

“This is probably the hardest golf course that we’ll play,” Scheffler said. “Maybe ever.”

The US Open is known for presenting challenges to the golfers who take it on, regardless of what course it’s held at. That’s part of what makes it a unique test. Scheffler would go on to compare it to the different surfaces that tennis sees in its major tournaments.

“I kind of equate some of the major tests to — like the majors in tennis you’re playing on a different surface,” Scheffler said. “You’ve got grass, clay and then the hard court, and it’s a different style of game. The U.S. Open compared to the Masters is a completely different type of test… When you miss the green at the Masters, the ball runs away and it goes into these areas, and you can play a bump, you can play a flop. There’s different options. Here, when you hit the ball over the green, you just get in some heavy rough, and it’s like, let me see how I can pop the ball out of this rough and somehow give myself a look.”

Shane Lowry was able to shoot his eagle from the fairway. That’s where he, and everyone else, is going to live if they want to have success. The rough is going to be too difficult this weekend.