Many of the world’s top golfers are in Southeastern Wisconsin this week to compete in the 80th U.S. Women’s Open at Erin Hills.
The preeminent championship in women’s golf began Thursday and runs through Sunday.
The course has been earning high praise from players, who will also be dealing with a bit of anxiety over the scenic but challenging 6,745-yard layout in the town of Erin, in a rustic section of Washington County.
Nelly Korda, 26, the world’s top-ranked golfer, expects the Erin Hills layout to be a significant test for the players in the field, even more so if wind becomes a factor.
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“It’s very demanding off the tee with all the bunkers,” Korda said. “The bunkers are not easy. Sometimes you just don’t even have a stance in them because they’re so small. Then the shots into the greens – and also the greens [themselves]. Just an overall good test of your entire game.”
After a few practice rounds, Korda, a Floridian, deemed the course “very demanding.”
“It’s firm. It’s fast as well,” she said. “Even if you think you’ve hit it good, you can only exhale when you see (the ball) stop.”
Lydia Ko, the world’s No. 3 ranked player, reigning Olympic gold medalist and 23-time LPGA Tour winner, said she watched videos on YouTube to get an idea of what she’d be up against before arriving at Erin Hills.
“But you don’t really know until you get here,” said the 28-year-old superstar from New Zealand, who earned a spot in the LPGA Hall of Fame last year. “The course is difficult. It’s fun. You need a lot of creativity, and the course tends to change in regards to firmness and green speed. I’m excited to see how the course changes over the next couple days, but it’s a great golf course. I think it’s fun. Hopefully I can hit some good shots and get a few good lucky bounces and kind of go from there.”
The course is only part of the Erin Hills experience for the players.
Korda said she’s staying in a house a short drive from Erin Hills and has been joined by her parents for the entire week.
“It’s so pretty. I’m staying on a lake and it’s a nice little getaway,” Korda said.
Ko is also staying in an area not far from the course. Although she wasn’t sure of its name, she described it “as the nicest town in the area.”
Ko said she was unaware of Wisconsin’s reputation as America’s Dairyland until arriving for the Open. “I didn’t know that,” she said. “I only found that out because they have a cheese tasting here, and I love my cheese.”
Ko said there’s a lot to like about the area, beyond the cheese.
“It’s obviously very quiet, so it’s kind of hard to gauge if there’s going to be a lot of people coming out to watch us this week or not,” she said. “But it’s nice. We’ve had some really nice weather, and sometimes we bring bad weather energy in, but I think for the most part, it’s going to be good.”
Ko said a benefit of playing professional golf is having a chance to travel across the United States and getting to experience places such as Southeastern Wisconsin. “The USA is so big, especially coming from a country like New Zealand,” she said. “It’s pretty amazing to see how different places are, depending on what state and what city you’re in. It’s a nice, new experience for me.”
The 80th U.S. Women’s Open is the third to be played in Wisconsin, with Se Ri Pak winning in 1998 and Na Yeon Choi winning the 2012 championship, both at Blackwolf Run in Kohler.
Ko was part of the field at the 2012 U.S. women’s open, competing as an amateur at the age of 15. “I was very nervous,” she recalled. “I remember I couldn’t even line up my ball on the first green. The adrenaline and all that kind of kicks in, and I just remember being so nervous, and that golf course was really difficult.”
Located 35 miles northwest of Milwaukee in the Kettle Moraine region, Erin Hills was developed by Bob Lang and designed by Michael Hurdzan, Dana Fry and Ron Whitten. The public facility, which features bentgrass greens and fine fescue fairways, opened for play in 2006. The course, owned by Andy Ziegler, underwent a major renovation in 2010.
The U.S. Women’s Open is the fifth USGA championship conducted at Erin Hills, which will host five more events over the next two decades. The course also played host to the first U.S. Open in Wisconsin in 2017 when Brooks Koepka shot a final-round 67 to post a four-stroke victory.
Erin Hills was also the site of the 2011 U.S. Amateur and 2008 U.S. Women’s Amateur Public Links championships.
“We have a long-standing relationship with Erin Hills that goes back to before Erin Hills even opened for business,” said Shannon Rouillard, USGA senior director of championships.
“Erin Hills’ leadership – Andy Ziegler and the entire team – has made an incredible commitment to the Women’s Open this week,” she said.
Rouillard noted that Erin Hills has been closed to the public since October in preparation of the U.S. Women’s Open. “This partnership with Erin Hills started 20-plus years ago, and when USGA staff come here we feel like family, and it’s a mutual feeling for them, too,” she said.
The course will present a “tough but fair test” for golfers, Rouillard said.
“We strive to get every club dirty for the players here this week. Birdies will be made, but par is a good score,” Rouillard said. “There’s very little water and there’s no out of bounds. This course is defined by its natural topography. Erin Hills is also about strategic decision making. It’s also about the generous fairways. Tees and greens are perched up on dunes, so the players are going to experience a lot of uneven lies and blind and semi-blind shots into greens and even off the tee. This is a big golf course, and it’s going to test the players’ mentally and physically.”
Then there’s the wind, which could be a major factor.
“Will Mother Nature show up? Right now, she’s telling us she’s going to show up,” Rouillard said. “That will play a major component into our overall setup plan. We’re just really looking forward to seeing who’s going to rise to the occasion.”
United States Golf Association CEO Mike Whan has repeatedly referred to Erin Hills as the “Field of Dreams” for golf. “It’s just majestic,” he said. “I remember the first time I played it. It’s one of those places I wish I would have designed. I mean, I wouldn’t have done this well, but it’s amazing. What kind of vision they must have had, and to bring it to this level. It’s a special place. This is a great place to come and play golf and if you live here, you already know that.”
Whan said the USGA has developed a deep affinity for Wisconsin.
“We just love coming here and the way we’re treated and the way the crowds respond,” he said.
Erin Hills joins Hazeltine National Golf Club, Cherry Hills Country Club and Atlanta Athletic Club as the only courses to host a U.S. Open, U.S. Women’s Open, U.S. Amateur and U.S. Mid-Amateur.
The purse for the U.S. Women’s Open at Erin Hills is $12 million, the largest in women’s golf, with the champion receiving $2.4 million. Even golfers who miss the cut this week will still receive $10,000.
Women are a driving force behind the growth in golf, said Whan, who previously served as LPGA commissioner.
“One-third of the people who play the game in America are women, and 60% of the growth we’ve experienced since COVID has been driven by women,” he said.
