Notebook: 'Too-short' Merion lands 2013 U.S. Open

Once considered obsolete for today's long hitters, venerable Merion returns to the U.S. Open rotation. Plus, Johnny Miller has a lot on his mind, one Winged Foot green is not like the others, Vijay Singh turns travel agent, and more.

MAMARONECK, N.Y. (AP) -- During the technology boom, Merion Golf Club became a symbol of how distance was making some classic courses obsolete. The U.S. Golf Association never bought into that idea.

Merion was awarded the 2013 U.S. Open on Wednesday, a plan that has been in the works for the last couple of years and was finalized when none of the young bashers could tame the Ardmore, Pa., course last year during the qualifying for the U.S. Amateur.

It will be the fifth U.S. Open at Merion, but the first since David Graham won in 1981.

The course, designed by Hugh Wilson and opened in 1912, has been lengthened by about 400 yards as it courted another U.S. Open, and the closing five holes are daunting.

"There was once a commercial -- "It's not your father's Oldsmobile" -- and in some ways, I'd say it's the same for Merion," USGA Executive Director David Fay said. "They've always had a number of great holes where you weren't using your driver off the tee. But they've been able to make their long, stout holes ... really long. They have adapted well to the changing nature of the game."

Merion is best known for the 1930 U.S. Amateur, where Bobby Jones completed his career Grand Slam; and for the 1950 U.S. Open, when Ben Hogan struck that famous pose with a 1-iron from the 18th fairway.

With today's equipment, some have said Hogan would be hitting a pitching wedge. But that 1-iron approach was his 36th hole of the final round that year, and he was so tired that he couldn't get his driver down the hill. Earlier that day, Hogan hit 6-iron into the 18th.

Along with the course, the other challenge was finding space for the bells and whistles that now accompany a U.S. Open.

Fay and USGA President Walter Driver said the club was creative in finding room, and got great cooperation from homes along the fairways have offered their yards, along with nearby Haverford College.

Driver said he expects about 30,000 fans can attend Merion; that's up from the 20,000 estimate from Fay two years ago.

"A lot of trees have been removed, and that adds the gallery component," Fay said. "We'll move a putting green to have more room for crowd movement around the clubhouse."

PROUD AS A PEACOCK: Johnny Miller, the lead golf analyst at NBC Sports, said in a conference call Wednesday that the U.S. Open has "the most collapses on the last day of any championship."

Then again, NBC televises the U.S. Open. And Miller never won the Masters.

World-class players have missed crucial putts and hit wayward shots down the stretch at the U.S. Open, whether it was Tom Lehman at Congressional in 1997, Phil Mickelson at Pinehurst in 1999 or Retief Goosen shooting 81 in the final round at Pinehurst last year.

But that's not much different from other majors, and some of the most memorable collapses have come at Augusta National. There was Scott Hoch missing a 2 1/2-foot putt to win in a playoff over Nick Faldo, or Raymond Floyd pulling his approach into the water in another playoff against Faldo.

Does Greg Norman blowing a six-shot lead with a 76 in the final round of 1996 ring a bell? Or more recently, Fred Couples three-putting from 4 feet on the 14th hole of the final round this year?