The Championship Returns to Long Island
The 126th U.S. Open tees off June 18-21 at Shinnecock Hills Golf Club in Southampton, New York, marking the sixth Open hosted at the club. J.J. Spaun is last year's U.S. Open winner, but the spotlight this week belongs squarely to Scottie Scheffler in his first attempt to complete the career Grand Slam. Rory McIlroy (Masters) and Aaron Rai (PGA Championship) have claimed the first two majors this year, setting up a charged atmosphere for golf's national championship. The purse details for 2026 remain unannounced, though the total purse was $21.5 million in 2025, with $4.3 million awarded to the winner.
This is not a U.S. Open setup built on narrow corridors and suffocating rough. Shinnecock offers something more honest and more difficult.
A Links Test on American Soil
Measuring 7,440 yards and playing to a par of 70, Shinnecock Hills remains one of the purest examinations in major championship golf. The course is famous for its thick fescue rough, rolling terrain, and sometimes windy conditions off the Atlantic. The fairways are very wide by U.S. Open standards, but due to the firmness and elevation changes, they'll play a bit narrower than they look. Most players will use less than driver on many tee shots to keep the ball in the fairway and avoid the extremely penal fescue rough.
The greens at Shinnecock challenge players with extreme slopes and ridges, which when exposed to the wind, can create lightning-quick putting surfaces. The test only amplifies as the greens bake out in the summer sun each afternoon. Gusting winds off Peconic Bay and the nearby Atlantic Ocean hit players differently as the holes change direction, and scores are ultimately sorted at the crowned, sloping greens that can cruelly deflect weak and imprecise shots. History supports a brutal week: Shinnecock Hills remains the last venue to yield an over-par champion (Brooks Koepka in 2018) in a major.
The course rewards precision iron play and positional thinking over raw power. Accuracy reigns supreme over distance this week off the tee.
Players to Watch
Scottie Scheffler enters as the clear favorite despite a puzzling 2026 campaign. He has picked up just one win in 2026, and it came all the way back at The American Express in January. He has six top 5 finishes, including three runner-ups, since that win, but has yet to return to the winner's circle. He finished solo second and T14 at the two majors. The numbers remain elite, but the conversion has eluded him. A win this week would place him alongside Sarazen, Hogan, Player, Nicklaus, Woods, and McIlroy as a career Grand Slam winner. The championship concludes on Father's Day, which also happens to be Scheffler's 30th birthday.
Rory McIlroy presents the most compelling challenge to Scheffler's pursuit. McIlroy, a Grand Slam winner himself, has three top-10 finishes in 2026, including his second straight win at the Masters, and a T7 finish at the PGA Championship. Historically, Rory has performed well at the U.S. Open, dating back to his 2011 victory and nine top-10 finishes, of which six have come in his last seven tournament appearances. After winning at Augusta in April, McIlroy knows what it takes to close majors in 2026.
Russell Henley might be the most overlooked name in the top 10 of the world rankings. Sam Burns and Russell Henley are the only golfers to register a top 10 in each of the last two U.S. Opens. That consistency at golf's most demanding major speaks to his tee-to-green reliability and temperament under pressure. Henley's recent win at Colonial confirms he's entering this stretch in form.
Jon Rahm owns the pedigree, but Shinnecock carries a specific memory. Jon Rahm has four top 10s in his last six U.S. Open appearances, including his 2021 victory at Torrey Pines. However, the last time he missed the cut at the tournament was at Shinnecock Hills in 2018. The Spaniard is coming off a T-2 at the PGA Championship, so the game is sharp. Whether he and this course can reconcile will define his week.
Pool Strategy for Shinnecock
The firmness and wind at Shinnecock will create separation through scrambling and lag putting rather than birdie binges. Target players with proven major consistency over hot streaks. Ball-strikers who avoid mistakes will outlast aggressive shotmakers when conditions turn severe. Burns and Henley represent exactly that profile at better value than the marquee names.
Stuck between players? Our player comparison tool uses real PGA Tour strokes-gained data and weights each category by what this course rewards, then names the pick with a probability score.
Make Your Picks
Shinnecock Hills will identify the most complete player in the field. The career Grand Slam narrative surrounding Scheffler provides the emotional center, but McIlroy, Rahm, and a supporting cast of proven major performers guarantee a compelling four days. Ready to build your lineup? Create your U.S. Open pool or log in to set up a pool for your group before Thursday's first tee time.