Chaos rules the day as US Open comes to the glitz of LA

Brooks Koepka says he enjoys the chaos and there's no shortage of that in this U.S. Open, even for those who manage to avoid the traffic. Players are still trying to digest the blockbuster announcement of the PGA Tour ending a legal and moral battle with LIV Golf by becoming partners with the Saudi Arabia national wealth fund that paid for all those PGA Tour defections. And then came news late Tuesday night that PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan was turning over day-to-day operations while he recovers from what was described as a medical situation. And on Thursday, they take on the North course at Los Angeles Country Club that won't look like most U.S. Opens except for usual doses of frustration from the toughest test in golf. “Bogeys are OK. I'm going to remind myself of that because I don't do that so well,” said Max Homa, who holds the course record of 61 set 10 years ago in the Pac-12 championship. “It's a hard golf course. You're going to hit some good shots that go in some really weird spots. But if you keep hitting good shots you're going to make some birdies to make up some ground.” That sounds like a typical U.S. Open. It just doesn't look like one. U.S. Opens are typically in the suburbs, not on the edge of Beverly Hills with office buildings and high-rise condos lining the edge of the course built between Wilshire and Sunset boulevards. The aiming point off the first tee is the “H” on the Beverly Hilton sign. And while this golf course looks big — the fairways average 43 yards in width — it actually plays smaller than the target appears because of the severe slope in some of the fairways and angles required to access pins.