Billy Horschel, USGA exec. director Davis hash out Open issues
Billy Horschel had no problem letting the world know what he thought of the greens at Chambers Bay in last week’s U.S. Open. He didn’t like them, primarily because he thought they were poorly conditioned, lacked grass, rolled at inconsistent speeds and mitigated a good putter’s skill.
However, he wasn’t proud of the way he demonstrated his frustration on the course. He nearly slammed his putter into the sixth green. On another, he did some kind of fish dance after a putt wobbled its way away from the hole. The reigning FedEx Cup apologized for his actions — not the sentiment behind them — in the final round.
“I felt bad that the action I showed on the sixth green wasn’t the kind of professional manner I’m trying to show,” Horschel said Wednesday at the Travelers Championship in Cromwell, Conn.. “But my comments were straight, honest opinions. There was nothing wrong with my comments. The only thing I should have done was said them in private instead of airing them out in public.”
While Horschel may not have looked his best in expressing what was a valid point, he did get some satisfaction in a 15-20-minute conversation with USGA executive director and head U.S. Open setup man Mike Davis after the championship ended.
“We talked about my comments; he totally understood them,” Horschel explained. “He admitted that the greens weren’t what they wanted and he was sorry for that. He knew the greens were at a level that the USGA wasn’t happy with and said that if they ever go back there, they know what to do.”
Horschel made it clear that his only contention with Chambers and that Open setup was the greens.
“I said, ‘I know you guys are going to do a good job, you always do a good job,'” Horschel said. “I’ve never had an issue with anything the USGA has done at any U.S. Open or any U.S. Amateur. The one time I had an issue was with the condition of the greens. It wasn’t how they set up the golf course. It wasn’t moving tees around. It wasn’t hole locations. It all just came down to the condition of the greens.”
Ryan Ballengee is a Yahoo Sports contributor. Find him on Facebook and Twitter.
