Described as one of the “cathedrals” of golf, Oakmont Country Club is set to host the 125th U.S. Open fresh off a Gill Hanse renovation in 2023. The course fittingly features the iconic “Church Pew” bunker splintering the third and fourth holes, and it will stage what many describe as golf’s toughest test.

The 2007 U.S. Open at Oakmont, with a winning score of 5-over 285, featured the highest cumulative scoring average of any U.S. Open this century. This year, the USGA is looking to set the course up for the same.

The rough is the main cause of concern. Topping at 5 inches to start the tournament, a tangled mix of Kentucky bluegrass, ryegrass and poa annua will greet players just offline. Gone will be the graduated rough seen in the past, and the thickest of grass will be found directly off the fairways, averaging just 28 yards wide. Soggy conditions will hit the course to start the week, only exaggerating the meatiness and the guessing game that will ensue.

“If you don't hit the fairway, you're just kind of trying to base off of the lie and figure out what you're doing from there the rest of the hole and just try to minimize the damage when you get out of position,” Justin Thomas said at Oakmont.

Although only 7,372 yards in total, length off the tee will still be key – even on the par 3s. The formidable par-3 eighth hole can play upwards of 300 yards, which had Min Woo Lee, who sits second in Ball Speed on TOUR, questioning if the USGA had the par wrong when he had to pull the big headcover off.

If the weather cooperates, the USGA looks to get greens running 14 or higher on the Stimpmeter, with Oakmont offering the largest putting surfaces on TOUR this season. Hanse’s renovation offers new options for hole locations since the last time the U.S. Open visited western Pennsylvania, meaning early week preparations will be even more important.

With that said, let’s take a look at the toughest U.S. Opens we’ve seen this century.

Oakmont CC, 2007: Scoring average 5.71-over par

Winning score: 5 over

The U.S. Open’s toughest test of the century, the 2007 championship only saw two red figures on the leaderboard after the first round – and they never appeared again after that. The second round had especially tough conditions, with green speeds upwards of 14 1/2 to 15 on the Stimpmeter and devilish pin positions.

“I don’t know what the average score was, but I think I shot under par,” Tiger Woods said after a 4-over 74. He was correct, as the average score that Friday was 76.9.

For the week, only eight rounds were under par, with Àngel Cabrera’s winning score at a whopping 5 over. Every hole played over par on average, and there were 60 rounds of 80 or worse. The Argentine was the only player to break 70 twice on the way to holding off Woods and Jim Furyk.

Winged Foot Golf Club, 2006: Scoring average 5-over par

Winning score: 5 over

A wild finish in Mamaroneck, New York, saw Geoff Ogilvy win his only major title at Winged Foot Golf Club. Already the host site of “The Massacre at Winged Foot,” coined by journalist Dick Schaap during the 1974 U.S. Open, the course once again wreaked havoc among the best. A concoction of narrow fairways, severe rough described as “a golfer’s nightmare” by defending champion Michael Campbell, and rock-hard greens welcomed players in 2006.

Famously, club decisions on the final hole cost both Colin Montgomerie and Phil Mickelson. The Scotsman, opting for a 7-iron instead of a 6-iron, came up short at the par-4 18th and made double bogey. Mickelson had it in his hands as well, but he pulled his driver off the tee way left and was unable to advance his second shot more than 50 yards, leading to a double bogey and a 6-over total score alongside Montgomerie.

“I am such an idiot,” Mickelson said afterward.

Between the two meltdowns, Ogilvy set the clubhouse lead at 5 over, closing with four gutsy pars, including chipping in from behind the 17th green. It was ultimately enough to become the first Australian to win a major since Steve Elkington at the 1995 PGA Championship.

Notably this year, Woods also missed his first cut in a major as a professional. It was his first major start since his father Earl’s passing.

Bethpage Black Course, 2002: Scoring average 4.9-over par

Winning score: 3-under

There is a warning sign next to the first tee box for players to read before teeing off, so it’s no surprise that Bethpage Black sits on this list. But don’t be fooled by the winning score. Woods’ 3-under winning total can deceive those taking a glancing look into thinking Bethpage Black wasn’t as hard as it really was.

“It likes to be known as one of the hardest courses you’ve ever played,” said one local. “It’s always been like that. It wants you to walk off there out of breath.”

It was during the second round that Mother Nature decided to add to the already long and tough test, and soaking conditions lengthened the New York venue to distances even the best golfers couldn’t handle. The scoring average for Round 2 reached 76.47, almost six and a half shots over par.

“This course is so hard, there's no holes that you can say: I'm going to change my plan and get aggressive,” Davis Love III said while sitting T3 after Round 2. “Today you couldn't get to some of the fairways for half the field.”

Despite these conditions, Woods won in wire-to-wire fashion as the only competitor under par. His win at Bethpage was the final victory during a run that saw him win seven majors in 11 starts.

Shinnecock Hills Golf Club, 2018: Scoring average 4.65-over par

Winning score: 1 over

The U.S. Open returned to the site of its 2004 iteration, where a final-round scoring average of 78.7 had people questioning what was in store. The opening round experienced high winds across the golf course, accentuating the hard and fiery setup. Only four players sat under par after Round 1, and that number fell to just one after the second round.

A brutal Saturday saw a scoring average of 75.3, but that was just half the story. Those teeing off in the morning saw a stark difference in golf course setup, thanks to green speeds and receptiveness becoming almost unplayable for the leaders. The final 20 players to start on Saturday finished a combined 133-over par.

"Maybe I should have made the cut at 5 over," Rickie Fowler said after a 14-over 84 on Saturday, referencing the afternoon’s severe difficulty.

Conditions became easier on Sunday, with the winning score almost getting back to even par. Tommy Fleetwood equaled the lowest 18-hole score at the time with a final-round, 7-under 63.

Merion Golf Club, 2013: Scoring average 4.54-over par

Winning score: 1 over

Despite its modest length, under 7,000 yards, Merion put up a fight for the 113th U.S. Open. With soft conditions after Philadelphia-area storms, players thought it would be a shootout. But the narrow fairways lined with dense, thick rough that had been hosed meant accuracy was key. Exaggerated by the small and undulating greens, the setup’s difficulty brought over-par scores most of the week.

"Man, it was brutal out there," said Hunter Mahan, who was tied for the lead late on the back nine Sunday, before a costly double bogey at the 15th. "It was tough finishing.

"At the start of the week, everyone thought we were going to rip it up, but I just knew that somewhere around even par was going to win it."

Mahan was right. Justin Rose grinded out a final-round 71 to win the championship at 1 over.