UNIVERSITY PLACE, Wash. — Mike Davis, the executive director of the United States Golf Association, has heard the emotional critiques of the world’s best golfers as they assess the idiosyncratic layout of Chambers Bay Golf Course, the site of the United States Open.
“Some are absolutely effusive about this architecture,” Davis said Wednesday. “There are some that would say: ‘What are you doing conducting a British Open in the United States?’
“There are others that don’t know what to think.”
Davis smiled. His organization’s chief goal for the 18 holes along Puget Sound was to create an innovative version of a 120-year-old event.