‘Very poor’: Matt Fitzpatrick is not impressed by the US Open atmosphere
The atmosphere at the 2023 US Open has been one of many things debated this week and the lack of energy form the LA crowd was picked up by the tournament’s defending champion
Los Angeles Country Club has not just divided opinion this week – it has split it into a million tiny pieces.
Is it too easy? Is it dry enough? Is it too long?
The atmosphere has also been called into question with golf fans taking note of some muted applause and lack of energy in the crowd at the 2023 US Open.
The quieter feeling in the air has transferred to the players inside the ropes, and defending US Open champion Matt Fitzpatrick didn’t pull any punches when describing the lack of atmosphere.
“Very poor… It’s disappointing on the USGA side,” Fitzpatrick told Dan Rapaport of Barstool Sports.
“They want a great tournament – from what I’ve heard a lot of members bought tickets and that’s why there’s so many less people. Hopefully, it’s not the same for other US Opens going forward.”
The tickets for this year’s championship didn’t come cheap. A standard access ticket on Thursday was $290 – and the number of tickets available each day was restricted.
According to Golf Digest, 22,000 tickets were sold for each day and less than half of these were available for general admission access for spectators – the rest were corporate-style tickets.
There have also been reservations expressed about the viewing quality of the golf course, with the routing of the course making it difficult for fans to get around.
As for the North Course itself, Fitzpatrick might not find himself returning anytime soon. He took some parts of the course to task in the same way Brooks Koepka did after the second round.
“I just think the golf course is interesting, to be polite,” he said. “There’s just too many holes for me where you’ve got blind tee shots and then you’ve got fairways that don’t hold the ball. There’s too much slope.
“The greens certainly play better when they’re firmer. I definitely think that’s the case. They’re rolling really, really well. Some of the tee shots are just – I think they’re a little bit unfair.
“You hit a good tee shot and end up in the rough by a foot and then you’re hacking it out.
“Meanwhile, someone has hit it miles offline the other way and they’ve got a shot. Yeah, not my cup of tea.”
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Matt Chivers
Now on the wrong side of 25, Matt has been playing golf since the age of 13 and was largely inspired to take up the game by countless family members who played golf during his childhood.
Matt is a member at Royal Cinque Ports in Deal playing off a 5 handicap, just a pitching wedge away from his hometown of Dover where he went to school and grew up. He has previously been a member at Etchinghill and Walmer and Kingsdown in Kent.
Having studied history at the University of Liverpool, Matt went on to pass his NCTJ Exams in Manchester a year later to fulfil his lifelong ambition of becoming a journalist. He picked up work experience along the way at places such as the Racing Post, the Independent, Sportsbeat and the Lancashire Evening Post.
Matt joined NCG in February 2023 and is the website’s main source of tour news, features and opinion. He has reported live from events such as The Open, the Ryder Cup and The Players Championship, having also interviewed and spoken to the likes of Rory McIlroy, Tommy Fleetwood, Lee Westwood, Graeme McDowell, Henrik Stenson, to name just a few.
Consuming tour golf on what is a 24/7 basis, you can come to Matt for informed views on the game and the latest updates on the PGA Tour, DP World Tour, LPGA Tour, Ladies European Tour and LIV Golf.
What’s in Matt’s bag: Cobra LTDx LS driver, Cobra LTDx 3-wood, TaylorMade P7MC irons, Ping Glide 4.0 wedges, Odyssey putter.
