[PERSPECTIVE FROM THE 19^TH HOLE: This is the title I chose for my personal blog, which is meant to give me an outlet for one of my favorite crafts – writing – plus to use an image from my favorite sport, golf. Out of college, my first job was a reporter for the Daily Astorian (in Astoria, Oregon) and I went on from there to practice writing in all of my professional positions, including as an Oregon state government manager and a private sector lobbyist. This blog also allows me to link another favorite pastime – politics and the art of developing pubic policy – to what I write. If you are reading this, thanks for doing so and please don’t hesitate to respond so we can engage in a dialogue, not just a monologue.]

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The title of this blog means that I should comment on the U.S. Open at Chambers Bay near Tacoma, the national championship of golf contested for the first time in the Pacific Northwest.

There has been a lot of commentary on the Open site, a seven-year-old golf course built by Pierce County government on an old rock quarry just above Puget Sound. Much of it has been negative, though some commentators compliment the sponsoring organization, the United States Golf Association (OSGA), for pushing the envelope to venture onto a new course, one that looks a lot like links-style golf in Scotland and other countries in Europe.

Just before Fathers’ Day weekend, I had the privilege of attending the first round of the tournament with my daughter, Lissy, her husband, Tim, and their two children, Mason and Kate. It was great to be there together to witness the spectacle of the U.S. Open near where we live. No regrets on having made the trip.

But, to use the word “witness” is a bit of an overstatement.

I have watched a lot of golf on a lot of venues over the years, but let me say this about Chambers Bay: It was the most difficult course to traverse as a spectator than any I have been on in my golf-watching career.

I have heard many stories of spectators who attended Thursday, as I did, and had plans to attend on other days, but gave up their tickets and said, “never again,” at least at Chambers Bay. Some of these multiple-day ticket holders actually came from the East Coast.

Here is a quick summary of my views on this U.S. Open experience:

• The USGA should never venture again to Chambers Bay unless it improves the spectator experience. Based on my one-day sojourn, I could propose a number of ways to do that, but the very character of the site, which could not be changed, make viewing difficult. So, I say go elsewhere. One of the best sites in the Northwest would be Pumpkin Ridge in North Plains, Oregon, which has hosted the U.S. Women’s Open and the U.S. Amateur, proving that it can host major events with appropriate challenges, both for players and spectators.

• Those of us who had traveled to Chambers Bay to play knew the USGA would have trouble with the greens – and it did, in spades. On many recent past occasions, there were temporary greens for the public, presumably to save the real ones for the tournament. But, the number of comments from respected players – comments about the “broccoli” character of the greens (bumpy and nearly unplayable on many occasions) — should give the USGA pause. Not because the player complaints – there always will be such complaints at an Open – but because problems with the site become the story. It’s the site, not golf.

• Still, one of the best characteristics of the Chambers Bay site: A focus on “links-style” golf, which requires players to learn how the golf ball travels on hard ground on the way toward the green, all the while with the ocean (in this case, Puget Sound) in the background. Good for American golf to get this view of how golf often is played in Europe – and, remember, many of those who watched on television did so from the East Coast in prime time there.

• There also has been some focus in recent days about how Fox Sports performed on its first foray into major golf tournament broadcasting after it wrested the USGA contract away from NBC. My view: Passably. The Fox crew did not necessarily distinguish itself in ways that set it apart from its more experienced counterparts. Watching Joe Buck in the anchor seat made me wonder when Tim McCarver would show up – and, for those of you who don’t watch much baseball, Buck’s main broadcast activity, McCarver is often his counterpart on baseball broadcasts. The best golf commentator was former player Corey Pavin. He provided solid insights about the golf he saw being played as he followed the lead groups toward the last hole.

Someone said the other day that, “after all, this is golf, not a life or death situation.” And, to be sure, golf is still a game and a sport. But, for a golf fan like me, it was a riveting spectacle over the last few days, even with all of the controversy and criticism, some of which mirror my own views.

Now, for me, back to watching politics.