Erin Hills, the site of the 2017 U.S. Open, is a star on the horizon

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A clubhouse view of Erin Hills in Hartford, Wis., which will host the U.S. Amateur on Aug. 22-28 and the U.S. Open in 2017. | Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

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Updated: November 2, 2011 3:15PM

HARTFORD, Wis. — Who gives the U.S. Open to a brand-new course that might not even be the top layout in east-central Wisconsin?

The U.S. Golf Association.

It’s a call that remains open to debate, especially because Wisconsin, which hadn’t been a mecca for major golf championships, already is in the midst of three PGA Championships and a Ryder Cup at Whistling Straits and its spectacular Lake Michigan setting.

The debate will be settled when the 2017 U.S. Open is played at Erin Hills, about 40 miles northwest of Milwaukee.

It’s a marvelous Irish links-style course that lies in the considerable shadow of Whistling Straits, which hosted the PGA Championship in 2004 and 2010 and will host another PGA in 2015, plus the Ryder Cup in 2020. Even Whistling Straits’ sister layout, the Black Wolf Run River course, which will host its second U.S. Women’s Open next summer, might earn some votes.

But when you’ve cracked a tight little club that’s anchored by historic venues such as Pebble Beach, Winged Foot, Shinnecock, the Olympic Club and Oakmont, it’s a pretty meteoric rise for a course that opened in 2006 and has undergone some major tweaking, including a serious overhaul less than two years ago.

If it lives up to its billing, Erin Hills might take its place alongside Bethpage Black, a public course outside New York City that hosted the U.S. Open in 2002 and 2009.

Midwest was overdue

The USGA will give its newest star a test drive Aug. 22-28, when the U.S. Amateur will be played at Erin Hills and Blue Mound Golf & Country Club in nearby Wauwatosa. Blue Mound hosted the 1933 PGA Championship, the only other major that has been played in Wisconsin. To bolster interest, admission to the U.S. Amateur is free.

Even though the anointing of Erin Hills disappointed proponents of many worthy candidates, notably Cog Hill in Lemont and other traditional layouts around the Midwest, the USGA is confident its bold decision was a good one.

‘‘There are a lot of great courses,’’ Thomas J. O’Toole Jr., the chairman of the USGA championship committee, said last week at Erin Hills. ‘‘The competition for a U.S. Open is a difficult one. Until Bethpage, we never went to a public course for the U.S. Open. That public aspect was of great interest to us. To get to the Midwest again was great. And the uniqueness of what was built here was intriguing. We’ve got great Open tests — Pebble Beach, Oakmont, Shinnecock — but that doesn’t mean they all have to be the same.’’

A lot of elements go into choosing a course for the U.S. Open. The tournament has been spending a lot of time lately on the West Coast, where late daylight allows it to be played into prime time on TV, and on the East Coast, which is valued for its population and media potential.

But the USGA likes to move the national championship around, and the Midwest, which last hosted the Open at Olympia Fields in 2003, was overdue. Snubbing tradition-bound country clubs in tradition-bound metropolises, the USGA turned to the innovative Erin Hills, which is owned by investment executive Andy Ziegler, who bought the course from visionary creator Bob Lang, who had drained his calendar and greeting-card fortune.

‘They do it right’

The lure of a course that could hold up to 60,000 spectators was appealing. The proximity to Chicago-area golfers, who are no more than 21/2 hours away, could translate into a record turnout for the 2017 Open.

The cooperation of elected officials was also a big help.
From the governor down, Wisconsin cultivated USGA interest in Erin Hills.

‘‘Politics is very important, and Wisconsin understands that,’’ said Milwaukee investment executive Jim Reinhart, who is the general chairman of the U.S. Amateur this year. ‘‘No offense to Chicago or Cook County, but it’s a little harder to work in that environment than it is here.’’

So Erin Hills made sense for a variety of practical reasons. It also has improved its artistic side with a series of renovations.

A blind-shot par-3 over a hill, a tribute to a famous hole in LaHinch, Ireland, is gone. So is the sheer face on the par-5 first hole. No. 2 still can be a blind-shot par-4 that’s questionable for a U.S. Open, but its postage-stamp green is not as severe.

Erin Hills, which can be stretched to nearly 8,000 yards, has some grand Irish links-style holes that take advantage of the area’s rolling terrain and natural grasses. And with six more years to tweak things, it’s looking more and more like it might be a site worthy of a U.S. Open.

Because Erin Hills is open to the public, curious golfers can check it out. Greens fees are $200, but caddie fees bring the price closer to $300. Walking is mandatory. Even pull-carts are not allowed, so the audience is limited.

But Erin Hills proponents think they have a winner. And the USGA agrees.

‘‘It’s a public golf course, but they do it right,’’ O’Toole said. ‘‘You can go a long way in public golf and not see the presentation you’ll see here at Erin Hills.’’

The final vote, though, won’t be cast until 2017.