Where Does LA Country Club's Monster 11th Rank In Longest Par 3s In US Open History?

Where does the 290-yard 11th at LACC rank among the longest par 3s ever played at the US Open?

A red US Open flag blows in the wind
(Image credit: Getty Images)
Paul Higham
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There’ll be a huge par 3 test for players competing in the US Open at Los Angeles Country Club with the monster 11th measuring in at 290 yards – the second-longest par 3 in tournament history.

It’s an unusual challenge for the 123rd US Open as the par 70 layout consists of five par 3s and just three par 5s – and there’s a couple of "short" holes that rank among the longest ever played.

The seventh hole is down as a 284-yard par 3 while the signature hole at LACC is the 11th, which is the monster 290-yard par 3 that has everyone talking.

Martin Kaymer’s caddie Craig Connelly got plenty of responses when posting a picture of the hole on Twitter, although it’s not quite as unbelievably tough as it sounds as the hole does play downhill at least.

You can also land the ball short and run it up to the green thanks to a gathering area just ahead of the putting surface, so there are ways to tackle this goliath for those wanting to lift the US Open come Sunday.

It’s not actually the longest hole the US Open has ever had though, with the infamous eighth at Oakmont being stretched out and playing a full 300 yards in the final round of the 2007 US Open, before dropping it by just a yard at 299 when the tournament returned in 2016.

The eighth at Oakmont currently dominates with all five top spots in the longest par 3s ever played at the US Open, but that monopoly is about to be broken up by both the seventh and signature 11th at Los Angeles CC.

If both are played at their full distance, the 290-yard 11th will come in at third on the all-time list of long par 3s played at the US Open, with the seventh hole slotting in behind in fourth.

As far as individual holes go, they’ll come in as the second and third-longest holes in US Open history behind Oakmont’s eighth.

The 266-yard third at Merion caused plenty of problems in 2013 when Justin Rose won his only Major to date, while the second at Shinnecock Hills at 264 yards and the third at Olympic Club in San Francisco at 256 yards complete the current top 10.

It looks like being a tough week on the par 3s at the US Open this week – we shouldn’t really even be calling them short holes anymore.

LONGEST PAR 3s IN US OPEN HISTORY

  • 300 yards, 8th, fourth round, Oakmont (Pa.) C.C., 2007
  • 299 yards, 8th, fourth round, Oakmont (Pa.) C.C., 2016
  • 281 yards, 8th, second round, Oakmont (Pa.) C.C., 2007
  • 281 yards, 8th, second round, Oakmont (Pa.) C.C., 2016
  • 279 yards, 8th, third round, Oakmont (Pa.) C.C., 2007
  • 266 yards, 3rd, fourth round, Merion G.C. (East Course), Ardmore, Pa., 2013
  • 264 yards, 2nd, first round, Shinnecock Hills G.C., Southampton, N.Y., 2018
  • 261 yards, 8th, first round, Oakmont (Pa.) C.C., 2007
  • 258 yards, 8th, first round, Oakmont (Pa.) C.C., 2016
  • 256 yards, 3rd, third round, The Olympic Club (Lake Course), San Francisco, Calif., 2012
Paul Higham
Paul Higham
Contributor

Paul Higham is a sports journalist with over 20 years of experience in covering most major sporting events for both Sky Sports and BBC Sport. He is currently freelance and covers the golf majors on the BBC Sport website.  Highlights over the years include covering that epic Monday finish in the Ryder Cup at Celtic Manor and watching Rory McIlroy produce one of the most dominant Major wins at the 2011 US Open at Congressional. He also writes betting previews and still feels strangely proud of backing Danny Willett when he won the Masters in 2016 - Willett also praised his putting stroke during a media event before the Open at Hoylake. Favourite interviews he's conducted have been with McIlroy, Paul McGinley, Thomas Bjorn, Rickie Fowler and the enigma that is Victor Dubuisson. A big fan of watching any golf from any tour, sadly he spends more time writing about golf than playing these days with two young children, and as a big fair weather golfer claims playing in shorts is worth at least five shots. Being from Liverpool he loves the likes of Hoylake, Birkdale and the stretch of tracks along England's Golf Coast, but would say his favourite courses played are Kingsbarns and Portrush. 

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