USGA tees up for 2025 U.S. Open with $4.8M Oakmont Country Club expansion

With the U.S. Open golf tournament returning to Oakmont in just over a year, the United States Golf Association is working to expand and upgrade the Oakmont Country Club in anticipation of massive crowds flocking to the Allegheny Valley borough.

The golf association is in the midst of a $4.8 million expansion of the country club that includes new private roads, staging grounds, shuttle stations and improved admission facilities.

The USGA recently submitted a grant application to Pennsylvania’s Redevelopment Assistance Capital Program detailing the scope of the project. The national golf group is seeking $2.3 million in grant funding to help pay for the ongoing expansion.

More than 230,000 fans attended the last U.S. Open at the Oakmont Country Club in 2016, one of the largest crowds ever for the annual golf tournament. The nearly 130-year-old tournament rotates through different sites across the U.S. each year.

The USGA expects attendance to increase in 2025 and is hoping improvements at the 200-acre golf course will help reduce congestion on Hulton Road and throughout Oakmont.

Local roadways were congested during the 2016 tournament thanks to an abundance of shuttles and buses ferrying spectators to and from the country club, said the grant application.

Julia Pine, a USGA spokeswoman, said the organization is excited to return to the Pittsburgh area next year and will be sharing more details about the 2025 tournament and planning for Oakmont in the coming weeks.

“Our goal remains focused on transforming our operations to make sure that Oakmont continues to be a viable site to host golf fans at our national championship for years to come while also driving economic development and tourism opportunities for the greater Pittsburgh area,” she said.

Oakmont Country Club was selected in 2021 as an anchor site for future USGA championships. The course will host the men’s U.S. Open in 2025, 2034, 2042 and 2049, as well as the U.S. Women’s Open in 2028 and 2038.

Pine said the expansion at Oakmont Country Club is part of the USGA’s commitment to the course.

The project includes grading, clearing, building new private roads, and landscaping that is meant to improve the flow of parking and shuttles throughout the country club.

USGA will pave new shuttle stations, a public safety staging compound, and core spectator walkways, according to the grant application.

Expansion also includes purchasing $1.5 million worth of land near the country club to expand transportation, security, and admission operations for the U.S. Open.

The USGA said in its grant application that next year’s U.S. Open is anticipated to bring an estimated $77.4 million in direct consumer spending and $4.9 million in newly generated tax and fee revenue to the region.

The group said challenges such as traffic will be exacerbated without improvements to Oakmont Country Club.

Construction is estimated to be completed by December 2026, according to the grant application. It’s unclear what construction already has been completed and what will be ready for the tournament in June 2025.