U.S. Open Media Center: Behind the Scenes Access

text
🔶TARGETSITE: Golf Enthusiast Daily
🔶CANONICALURL: https://golfenthusiastdaily.com/news/inside-look-us-open-media-coverage-oakmont
🔶NEWSCATEGORY: Golf News
🔶PRIMARYKEYWORDS: US Open coverage, golf media, Oakmont, USGA press conference, golf journalism
🔶AUDIENCE: avid golf fans
🔶TONE: Informative and engaging
🔶DATELINELOCATION: OAKMONT, Pa.🔶EVERGREENBACKGROUNDTOPICS: Golf tournament coverage, sports journalism, golf course history, golf governance
🔶ORIGINALBRANDTERMS: Rogers Report, GOLF, Sports Illustrated, Bob Harig, Mike Whan, Fred Perpall, John Bodenhamer, USGA, Claire Rogers, Seen & Heard, the Scoop

OAKMONT, Pa. - The U.S. Open at Oakmont is underway, and this year's media coverage is providing fans with unprecedented access and insights. From in-depth articles to player interviews and social media content, the media center is buzzing with activity.

One highlight of the week was the USGA press conference, which offered a behind-the-scenes look at the institution's approach to the championship and the challenges facing the sport.

Inside the USGA Press Conference
Table of Contents
Inside the USGA Press Conference
A Look at Golf Media
The USGA press conference
chatting with other media members
Claire rogers


The USGA press conference provided valuable context for the U.S. Open, addressing key issues and offering insights into the organization's decision-making processes.



Here are some key takeaways:

   The U.S. Open is the longest-running professional golf tournament in America, dating back to 1895.   Championship Sunday always falls on Father's Day, adding a special touch to the event.
   the U.S. Open is a truly open championship, with over 10,000 golfers attempting to qualify this year.
   Oakmont is known for its challenging conditions, with onyl a small percentage of players finishing under par in major championships held there.
   The USGA's mantra is "tough but fair," aiming to test every aspect of a player's game.

the press conference also tackled tough questions, including driver testing and the rollback debate. These discussions highlighted the complexities of governing the sport and the challenges of balancing different perspectives.



A Look at Golf Media

Golf media plays a crucial role in bringing the U.S. Open to fans around the world. From seasoned journalists to content creators, a diverse range of professionals contribute to the coverage.



Here's a glimpse into the world of golf media:

   Course Conditions: Experts analyze the course,providing insights into the challenges players face.
   Equipment: tech-savvy reporters delve into the latest gear and how it impacts performance.
   Player Profiles: Writers share the stories of the athletes, offering a personal connection to the game.
   Ancient Context: Historians explore the rich history of the course and the tournament.
   Content Creation: Videographers, interviewers, and social media specialists capture the excitement and drama of the event.

The media center at Oakmont is a hub of activity, with hundreds of professionals working to deliver comprehensive coverage of the U.S. Open. The variety of content ensures that there is something for every golf fan to enjoy.


    

          By:
        
                    
                
                Golf Enthusiast Daily Staff            
            
                            
    
      
      
                    June 12, 2025
                
    
      

    

          

          
      
OAKMONT, Pa.- Hello friends and welcome to the latest edition of the Rogers Report! I'm writing to you from inside the media center at the U.S. Open and am pleased to share with you all that I have received a new pair of glasses after dropping mine in the Oakmont rough on No. 18 at some point on Monday afternoon.
It's been a great start to the week so far, and I did something on Wednesday morning that I wasn't expecting: I thoroughly enjoyed the USGA's press conference.

Update: the Oakmont rough may have taken my glasses but it cannot take my spirit. Shout out to overnight glasses dot com for the new pair I've never been more back https://t.co/SJ6hnW87XC
- claire rogers (@kclairerogers) June 12, 2025
The USGA press conference
I wasn't originally planning on attending the USGA press conference on Wednesday morning at Oakmont. I wanted to go walk a few holes before lunch, but when Sports Illustrated's Bob Harig asked me to walk over to the interview area with him, so I decided to go. And I'm realy glad I did, because it got me very excited for the start of play at Oakmont.
By the time Wednesday rolls around at major championships, there's frequently enough a feeling of restlessness. We've been here for three days, let's get the show on the road already! But what Mike Whan, Fred Perpall and John Bodenhamer said about the championship on Wednesday morning encouraged me to slow down and enjoy every moment of this week, even if I was feeling a little eager for play to begin.
So what exactly makes the U.S. Open so special? Let's take a look.


It's the longest running professional golf tournament in America. The first one was played in 1895 at Newport Country club (shout out to my lovely home state of Rhode Island) and the winner earned 150 bucks.



Championship Sunday always falls on father's Day.



It's truly an "Open" championship: the first year, there was 11 entrants trying to make it through in 1895.This year, 10,200 golfers tried to qualify for Oakmont.



1,385 players have played in a major championship at Oakmont.Only 27 of them finished under par after all four rounds. That's just two percent! The last time the U.S. Open was at Oakmont, Dustin Johnson won at four under par. The time before that? Angel Cabrera won at five over par.



Thier mantra is "tough but fair." They want golfers to "get every club in a player's bag dirty. All 15 of them.The 14 in their bag and the one between their ears."

Whan, Perpall and Bodenhamer weren't afraid to answer the tough questions during their press conference, either. Whan explained driver testing, a process that has always sort of confused me, perfectly.
Same with the rollback debate. I'll admit I haven't really known what to make of the whole thing. Whan and Perpall's description helped me really understand (for the first time) just how tricky it is to be the ones calling the shots.
Whan: "The reality of it is governance is hard. I knew it when I got here, but it is hard. These other stakeholders are my friends and they're passionate about the future of the game just like us,and I get that. What the anxiety comes from is every time I open my computer and read 100 emails, 50 people say 'I can't believe you're changing the ball' and 50 people say 'is that all you're doing on the ball?' Nobody says 'I think it's exactly right.' That's the hard part about governance, you're trying to find the right - even to Alex's point, I sat in Jack's table last Wednesday with other governance, with other stakeholders of the game and listened to a lot of really talented leaders of our game say to me 'That's not enough,' and with people sitting next to me that have said 'That's too much.' So I think they probably got to see the world of governance. Yeah, if you don't think that's hard, a little anxious, you've just got to come hang with us for a couple days. We know that's hard.But the worst thing would be to bail and do nothing just because it's hard."

powerful message about the golf ball rollback from @USGA President Fred Perpall today.
The further the ball goes, the more time it takes and the more it costs to build and maintain golf courses. pic.twitter.com/NoHoCDrvzT
- Andy Johnson (@AndyTFE) June 11, 2025
So thank you to the USGA's press conference for getting me to think about these issues! And thank you to Bob Harig, who is the only reason I ended up attending this presser on Wednesday morning.
chatting with other media members
As I was scrolling through Twitter (ahem, X) I came across a post asking what I do when I'm at golf tournaments. I'm not sure if it was a snarky remark or not, but it did get me thinking about just how many moving parts there are in golf media. 

Great Q! I write an article from on site every day, am part of the Seen & Heard video franchise for GOLF, am the director of social & also film interviews called the Scoop. Today I got to show a junior reporter around Oakmont with the USGA which was a blast. https://t.co/WipdiQKVq1
- claire rogers (@kclairerogers) June 10, 2025
There are a few hundred media seats in the media center at Oakmont this week, and everyone is working on something wholly different. There are endless storylines at golf tournaments. You've got people writing about course conditions. Others are focused on equipment. Somebody will write a profile on a specific player. The history of the course is always covered as well.
Player press conferences offer up endless opportunities for storylines, and then you've got people on the content side. You've got people making hype videos for players' social channels, videographers capturing the grounds crew, interviewers prepping to ask questions and more. I asked various media members to share what their day looked like on Wednesday, and there was so, so much variety in their responses.
There truly is something for every kind of golf fan out there.A lot of people see the final product when it comes to articles, videos and social posts, but media centers at major championships allow those with credentials to get a sense of the depth of content that comes out of tournaments like the U.S. Open.






">
	

        

                                                                
        


                        
Claire rogers
                
Golf.com Editor