The USGA has announced it will establish a new headquarters in nearby Pinehurst, and the village and its famed No. 2 course will host five U.S. Open Championships in the next 27 years.
First, about those U.S. Opens. Pinehurst was recently home to the 2014 Men’s and Women’s U.S. Open events in 2014 (read our coverage from six years ago here), and will host again in 2024. This weeks’ announcement added four more Opens — 2029, 2035, 2041 and 2047.
“The decision accelerates the USGA’s strategy to stage its premier golf championship at America’s most iconic venues with greater frequency,” Pinehurst.com reported. “By doing so, Pinehurst Resort & Country Club will serve as the USGA’s first anchor site for the U.S. Open.”
According to the site, the plan — conceived over the last several years — came to fruition through a “comprehensive economic development effort that involved representatives from the North Carolina General Assembly, Moore County the Village of Pinehurst and economic development experts.”
The headquarters will include a new equipment-testing facility, innovation hub, museum/visitors center and office in Pinehurst by 2023. A total investment of $25 million will mean two new buildings (housing 50 full-time staff members), and the USGA Golf Museum will give visitors a chance to “delve into the association’s premier collection of golf artifacts and connect them more deeply with the game’s rich history.”
According to Pinehurst.com, independent studies estimate that the total economic impact of the USGA’s long-term presence will exceed $2 billion to the state of North Carolina.