US Open    June 17, 2018    Day 4

The overnight crisis for the USGA was on full display when I arrived at Shinnecock at 9:30am.  The course was drying out and the warm, breezy weather forecast for today meant that there was a possibility the course could be "lost" with conditions making the putting surfaces unplayable.  This situation had been discussed endlessly in the weeks leading up to the Open, with much reference to the infamous 2004 Championship, when several greens actually were unplayable, not holding balls and resulting in a major USGA black eye.  That wasn't going to happen this time, and yet, here were officials checking the 13th green next to the volunteer HQ, checking the moisture and roll, ultimately watering before play commenced.  Their efforts were successful but the tension in the air was palpable.

USGA staff checking 13th green speed with stimp meter 

13 need to be hand watered to slow down the crazy green speed

Tony Finau about to tee off on first hole

Having no confirmation of an assignment as a forward marshal for today, I became a bit anxious waiting at the volunteer HQ for Brad, or anyone else who might be able to issue my credential for the day. Without that I had no walking authorization to be inside the ropes.  At various times I spoke to Captains Tom and Chuck, who said they'd see what they could do but then disappeared. This was not how I've been accustomed to volunteering, you know months in advance as to your assignment, whether it be at Deutsche Bank, Dell, Presidents Cup, or 3 prior US Opens, but never did I need to work the system to confirm my assignment like I was having to do here.  I'd been at the HQ for three hours, even calling Brad's cell and leaving a message with no response.  Finally when Brad showed up, I'm sure I was visibly relieved and he apologized for not getting my call.  He was extremely solicitous and immediately assigned me to the final pairing of the day, Tony Finau and Daniel Berger.  I was to be part of a 2-man volunteer crew for this pairing.  At the first tee, however, I was joined by two different guys in the 20's, both wearing USGA apparel and headsets, not part of the volunteer marshals.  They were to by my ''marshals'' for this pairing, although they admitted they had no marshaling experience.  It was basically like having two honorary marshals in tow, who I had to try to train on the fly, when both were more interested in an inside-the-ropes experience.  They eventually got with the program.

Even though Finau and Berger started out tied with DJ and Brooks Koepka, in the pairing just ahead of us, they eventually lost ground, and as a result, lost lots of gallery support.  We still had plenty of work to do keeping the crowd under control, but most had drifted up to walk with the eventual winner Koepka.  I had some excitement on 18 when Finau's drive went right, into the tall stuff, and resulted in a large search party of marshals, spectators, caddies, and players all wading through the knee-high fescue. The ball was eventually located by a tv spotter walking along with us, much to Tony's relief.  It was definitely anticlimactic as we finished on 18 green, Koepka having already sown-up the victory, with Finau and Berger going through the motions.   A USGA security chief commandeered about 20 of us marshals to form a rope line across the 18th fairway to prevent the spectators from coming up and over-running the green were the trophy ceremony was being set-up.  It soon became apparent that  this was unnecessary, at which point my buddy Brad came along and took me with him up to stand at the green amongst the assembled crowd of USGA officials, Shinnecock members, media, and the fans packed in the grandstands.  Pretty good stuff.   

The crowded scene at the 18th green

Brooks Koepka being interviewed by Todd Lewis of Golf Channel

US Open   June 16, 2018    Day 3

Took little over an 90 minutes for my commute from airbnb to Shinnecock, about 45 miles altogether,  like going to work by now.  At HQ I ran into Tom and thanked him for his help getting me set-up for yesterday's assignment.  He said he was glad I was able to find Andy amongst the throng of people and get my credential.  I also spoke with Andy who said we'd need extra marshals throughout the course due to the expected jump in overall attendance as yesterday's rain had given way to great summer weather for today.  No mention of serving as a forward marshal.  I hung around HQ for awhile, pondering my options, when Brad arrived, the top guy in charge for all marshals.  A Shinnecock member, very personable and outgoing.  He approached me about going out again today as a forward marshal for Phil's pairing with Beef Johnston at 11:30.  He then said something curious, "you're a friend of Mike Davis?"  I said I don't really know Mike, but we had exchanged emails a few times over my walking marshal proposal.  Brad said he had gotten word from Mike to be sure I got assigned as a forward marshal.  I was a bit astonished.  Brad gave me a credential for the day and added he'd have a headset for me but would need to bring it out to me at the 1st tee.

Phil about to tee off on first hole

The atmosphere was electric there in anticipation of Phil and Beef's arrival.  It was only 11am but already some patrons were enjoying adult beverages and having a great time.  To add to the festivities, it was Phil's birthday, with a line of fans wearing party hats and stretching out a sign reading Happy Birthday Phil.  He would be serenaded two to three times every hole by the crowd singing to him, must have been over 40 times by the end of the round.  

Turns out I was the only forward marshal for this pairing so I was free to vary my position relative to the players, depending on the need along the ropes.  Fans were once again surprisingly respectful, shouting out "Hey Phil'' every few seconds, and getting a response, which pleased the crow no end.  I heard over and over people saying, "He gave me a thumbs-up" or "Now I can die happy, I got Phil Mickelson to look at me"!  Beef got his share of comments, generally full-throated shouts of "Where's the beef? or Want some cheese with that, Beef?''  When I'd heard that one for the 20th time, I turned to the young guy standing at the rope who said it and I good-naturedly said, "Like that's the first time he's heard that one today".   His buddies immediately started razing him about how the marshal really called him out, all in good fun.    

As everyone knows by now, the sun, wind, and heat baked the greens, causing putts to barely hold onto the linoleum-like surfaces, and sending scores upwards.  Phil's meltdown on the 13th green, when he struck a still-moving ball and ended up scoring a 10, was a culmination of exasperating play. I unfortunately did not witness this directly as it was the only time I was in forward marshal mode and had already moved on to the 14th tee.  This was a challenge since it is right beside the clubhouse,  necessitating use of the elevated walkway set-up over the crowd.  I only heard about it further on down the 14th hole when a fellow marshal asked me what happened to Phil on 13?  I was in shock and immediately thought he'd get DQ'd.  Surprisingly, his demeanor did not change outwardly throughout the rest of the round, always acknowledging the crowd with each rendition of Happy Birthday to You, culminating at the 18th green when the entire grandstand broke into song as he approached his ball lying a few feet off the green, about 30 feet from the pin. Phil displayed a classic flop shot that went 20 feet in the air and landed 2 feet from the hole.  The crowd went wild.       

US Open  June 15, 2018       Day 2

Bit of a fiasco getting to the course this am as the shuttle bus driver missed the turn into Shinnecock, and took us on a 5 mile detour in the process of trying to turn around in the streets of Southampton.  Lots of impatient passengers shouting at the driver with ''helpful'' comments in loud Long Islander accents, "You need a freakin' co-pilot"!  Finally got to the course at 10am, went directly to the HQ to check-in and spoke with Geoff, today's 19th hole marshal Captain.  I pointed out my designation as a forward marshal, next to my name on his clipboard, to which he responded, ''just be at the 1st tee in time for the 1:47 teetime of Phil Mickelson, Jordan Spieth, and Rory McIlroy''.  No mention of needing a color-coded credential authorizing me to be inside the ropes.  I would need to pull some strings to make that happen I guessed.
At breakfast I met some interesting folks from Louisiana, one of whom was serving as a 19th hole marshal also.  He had volunteered at more than 15 US Opens, making a vacation of it every year.  Said he was paying $400/night for his hotel room, (Southampton, NY prices)!
I went back to HQ and spoke with my new buddy Tom who confirmed I would indeed have to get a "walking" credential for the day, but could only do that by speaking to Andy, higher up the chain of command.  Tom radio'd him and we arranged to meet at the first tee.  It was a miracle that I ran into him there, recognizing him from yesterday, as the area was again packed with spectators and officials.   Andy gave me the coveted walking credential, and explained the USGA forward marshal concept to me, staying half a hole ahead of the players to assist with finding stray shots in the fescue, and marshaling the crowd.  Placing me forward like this was their way of reducing the number of people inside the ropes clustered around the players, (caddies, scorer, sign-bearer, rule official, police, photographers, and USGA personnel).  I texted friends about my assignment and got an email from Dave at Dell who was curious about working the Open as he'd heard the traffic was awful.  I provided some details to everyone on the fly, but I hope this gives are more detailed picture of things.

I worked the first tee, marshaling as each three-some of players come up, huge roars from the gallery surrounding the area, including Shinnecock members on the nearby clubhouse porch.  I was eventually joined by Peter, who would be walking with me as our crew of 2 for the marquee group.  This was the fellow I met yesterday at the fifth hole, the Area Captain and veteran of many US Opens at all levels of marshaling.  He said he was sorry he had to stop me from walking further with TW yesterday without a credential.  

When Phil, Jordan, and Rory arrived on the tee, the crowd went crazy, Phil being a golf-God to the NY fans going back to the 2002 Open at Bethpage.  I felt a little sorry for Jordan and Rory as these two are often the featured player in a championship group, but not today.  The USGA official made the first tee introductions and we were off.   

Peter and I worked well together trying to stay ahead of the players, which was sometimes difficult in that we were walking through the deep fescue near the rope most of the time. It soon became apparent to me that staying so far ahead of the players was of limited value when it came to marshaling the crowd.  Not one ball landed in the fescue, so there was no need for any searches in the tall stuff.  I eventually worked back closer to the players, filling in any gap areas where the hole marshals were spread thin. Taking a knee not to block the patrons often elicited an appreciative comment from the gallery.  These folks paid a lot to get an unblocked view of Phil!  As usual, the crowd was in full voice, bellowing his name every 5 seconds, often resulting in a thumbs-up or smile from him.  Rory and Jordan got their share of call-outs but nothing like Phil's Army.  All three were out of contention by the end of the round, only Phil would be making it to the weekend, Jordan and Rory missing the cut.  It was a fun round nonetheless, getting to interact with the crowd, who were largely respectful and in good spirits.

   

US Open   June 14, 2018     Day 1

I delayed my start out to Shinnecock a bit in response to the email warning us about traffic delays.  As is turned out, there was minimal traffic on the Sunrise Highway eastbound, heading away from NYC at 8AM, followed by a 35 minute bus ride to the course.  On arriving, I walked directly to the volunteer pavilion and got a cup of coffee, a bagel, and an apple.  Nice when they provide us volunteers with a decent breakfast in a pleasant and roomy atmosphere, lots of flat screen tv's even.  I then went next door to the volunteer HQ and met the 19th hole committee chairman, who welcomed me and signed me in on his list, noting the designation of "forward marshal'' beside my name.  I asked about my assignment as a ''forward marshal'' but he had no info relating to this particular job for a 19th hole volunteer.  He explained further that all 4 of the walking marshals had already been assigned to the marquee groups for the day, (Phil, Rory, and Jordan in the morning, and Tiger, DJ, and Justin Thomas in the afternoon).  He said he'd see what he could do about scheduling me to walk tomorrow, the same groups going out but switching AM-PM starting times.  As an aside, he curiously mentioned the system was in ''complete chaos''.  I was a bit concerned that my forward marshal designation was going to take some back channel networking on my part.  To that end, I eventually heard another marshal coordinator speaking with the 2 walking marshals about to head out with Tiger's group this afternoon.  I introduced myself to Andy and explained my desire to be designated as a forward marshal tomorrow if possible. He said to arrive an hour before my designated shift just to be sure that the arrangement could be made.
I sat in HQ for an hour, noticing a guy (Tom) who was obviously some sort of Captain for the 19th hole marshal bullpen, receiving requests on his headset then announcing to the those of us waiting if we'd like to volunteer for such-and-such assignments, (''they need a couple of marshals at the 8th hole crosswalk'' was typical).  I began chatting with him and he was curious about my marshaling experience both at US Opens and DBC/DTC.  He said I could handle any marshal assignment, so what would I like to do?  "Maybe you could just go out and freelance at the greens where they might need some help".  I thought "great", I can see where I'm needed and fill in the gaps.  I headed over to the first tee, immediately beside the clubhouse and began working the chute and crosswalk where players were having to negotiate a narrow corridor with fans packed 10 deep behind the rope. The place was an absolute madhouse with fans, security, photographers, and USGA personnel jammed together.  The first tee Captain was great, with an excellent crew of marshals who were having to manage this crosswalk without having a riot on their hands. When Tiger's group approached, we heard them before we saw them as the crowd went nuts shouting.   Justin Thomas and Dustin Johnson walked through the chute and onto the tee, looking relaxed and fist-bumping everyone on the way.  Then Tiger arrived, to the sound of over a thousand people shouting his name.  As he walked by me, my reaction was that he did not look like he was having any fun!  His face looked downright haggard.  There was no energy in his affect.  He almost appeared nervous.
I walked inside the ropes with this group through the first 4 holes, seeing the course for the first time and getting a feel for the whole US Open atmosphere.  The severity of the rough was astonishing, knee high fescue which would be nearly impossible to hit from.  I remember worrying that we were going to spend a lot of time helping players look for any stray balls that landed in this stuff.  Shinnecock is a beast, listed as the fourth best course in America, (behind only Pebble Beach, Augusta National, and Cypress Point).  It is a classic seaside links design with hardly a tree in sight.  The wind was blowing at least 20 mph and I recall thinking I couldn't break 125 on this stark wild layout.  I was having a terrific time marshaling just inside the ropes, the gallery huge but largely respectful toward these 3 top players.  It couldn't last.
At the 5th hole, an area Captain spoke to me and said I didn't have the proper color coded credential for being inside the ropes.  Who knew?  I explained my situation but he said without the credential, I needed to remain at fixed areas on the course, not walking with the players.  He assigned me to work a crosswalk on this hole, for about an hour, whereupon I was subsequently relieved by other marshals permanently assigned to the fifth hole.  No problem. The USGA now has so many marshals on each hole that extra 19th hole marshals are often unnecessary.  I decided it was time for my lunch break so I stopped at the nearby concession stand for what is the traditional volunteer marshal meal, grilled chicken sandwich with lettuce and tomato, iced tea, and a double chocolate brownie.  That'll keep me going!
From here I calculated that Tiger's afternoon group would have an enormous gallery following along, so I went ahead to the 13th green, looked up the hole Captain and offered my services to help marshal, in anticipation of the massive crowd following TW, DJ, and JT.   He readily agreed and assigned me to the green for added marshaling support.  When Tiger got to the green, he unfortunately 4-putted, going +2 for the hole.  I felt like my man TW was blowing it and I internally wished he could hold on to make the cut.

Tiger unfortunately 4-putting

After 13, I walked over to the 16th green to marshal a complex set-up, with players teeing off on 17 while others were putting on 16.  A classic situation where massive crowds influenced the play in a US Open due to the close proximity of a green/tee complex on this classic old style course set-up.  The 17th hole marshal at the tee was basically alone in attempting to keep play under control.  He was really happy to have my support to keep the fans quiet and in control while the TW group completed play on the 16th green.  From there I walked up to the 18th green, found the Captain, and offered my assistance.  He said he definitely needed me alongside the green so I marshaled there as TW, DJ, and JT came up.  Always great to witness such top players give their all to stay in contention  at the US Open.

US Open   June 13, 2018   Shinnecock Hills    Southampton, NY



Once I'd received notification of having been selected to serve as a 19th Hole Marshal for the US Open at Shinnecock, I emailed Hank Thompson and cc'd Mike Davis:

Gentlemen,

It may be too late in the game to inquire further as to your plans for the U.S. Open at Shinnecock in a few months.  Nonetheless, I wanted to re-establish contact with you both about the need for and potential benefit of having walking marshals assigned to the highest profile player groups at this year's Championship. This need was further reinforced to me by my experience as a "Roving Marshal" at the President's Cup last October.  Despite there being as excessive amount of people inside the ropes with each player group, I believe a crew of 2-4 marshals would have quieted some of the exuberant fan behavior.  I accompanied several groups, and did what I could as a single marshal, but repeatedly wished I had 2 or 3 other marshals to help quell the rough comments directed at International team players, as well as WAGs. I am presently assigned to the 19th Hole marshals committee for this years Open, and would welcome the opportunity to expand our responsibilities to including walking marshals. 

Best regards, 

Wyn 

Hi Wyn,

I hope this email finds you well and getting ready for golf season.

We are looking forward to June at Shinnecock Hills.  We are also appreciative of your time and energy once again.  As you noted, we have you assigned to the 19th Hole Marshal Committee.  Within this committee we deploy marshals to different areas on the golf course to assist marshals.  We also utilize marshals from this committee to provide support to “marquee” groups during championship rounds.  Due to your experience, we have marked your information to be one of those marshals to help out with a certain group.  At this time, we do not know what groups at the moment but that will become clearer when starting times are determined prior to the championship.  

As we discussed following Oakmont, we continue to review our practices so that we can provide a secure playing fields for the players.  We also continue to review who has access to follow groups to attempt to clean up the areas around the players in the field.  As you note below, a concern of ours continues to be the number of people inside the ropes.

Thank you again for the email.  We look forward to seeing you in June!

Hank

I wasn't sure what to expect in being designated as a walking marshal for one of the marquee groups but I'd soon find out.  

I arrived on Long Island on Wednesday June 13th after a 5 hour drive from my hometown on Cape Cod, plenty of time to spare to see the course and test out the commuting logistics to the central parking area arranged by the USGA.  The Gabreski airport in Westhampton Beach would serve as the only parking for the Open, for all volunteers and spectators , located about 10 miles from Shinnecock.  The actual bus ride took 30 mins, not too bad, this being 5pm.  The championship director would subsequently send a email to all volunteers stating that the morning bus ride was taking 1:45 however, due to weekday L.I. rush hour traffic + golf related crowds on the roads.  Yikes!   

Shinnecock's timeless clubhouse 

I walked around the course a bit, taking in the stately old clubhouse, but  there was no gaining entrance without a member credential. Checked out the practice range, putting, and chipping areas, and strolled down to the volunteer pavilion, for once conveniently located near the clubhouse. Also checked out the massive merchandise area for potential purchases later in the week.  I could feel the buzz in the air from the crowd still on the premises at this late hour on the final practice day.   Can't wait to get started tomorrow.