The US Open is a meat grinder. There is honestly no other way to describe it. While every other major championship tries to find a balance between difficulty and "fairness," the USGA usually chooses violence. This year at Pinehurst No. 2, the "cut" wasn't just a line on a scoreboard; it was a psychological breaking point for some of the best golfers on the planet.
If you weren't watching the Friday afternoon carnage, you missed a masterclass in defensive golf. The greens were basically inverted saucers covered in glass. If you missed the fairway by three feet? You were playing out of "wiregrass," which is essentially a botanical lottery where the prize is a double bogey.
By the time the dust settled on Friday evening, the officials looked at the numbers and drew a line in the sand. Who made the cut at the US Open came down to a score of 5-over par.
The Numbers Game at Pinehurst
The cut rule for the US Open is pretty straightforward, though it changed a few years back. It’s simple: the top 60 players (including ties) move on to the weekend. There is no "10-shot rule" anymore. That old rule used to save players who were trailing the leader by 10 strokes or less, but the USGA scrapped that to keep the weekend fields manageable and fast.
This year, 74 players survived.
That means if you shot a 150 over two days, you were safe. If you shot a 151? You were headed to the airport. It sounds tiny, right? One stroke. But that one stroke is the difference between a massive paycheck and a literal $0 return on a very expensive week of travel and caddy fees.
The scoring average on Friday was significantly higher than Thursday. The sun baked the greens until they turned a sickly shade of purple-grey. Professionals were hitting "putts" from thirty yards off the green because using a wedge was too risky. Honestly, it was hilarious and heartbreaking all at once.
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The Stars Who Didn't Make the Cut at the US Open
This is where it gets spicy. You expect the amateurs and the local qualifiers to struggle. You don't necessarily expect some of the biggest names in the sport to go home early.
Tiger Woods was the big one. Look, we all love Tiger, but Pinehurst is a physical demand he just couldn't meet this week. He finished at 7-over par. He showed flashes of that old brilliance—a striped iron here, a clutch par save there—but the consistency wasn't there. He looked tired. He looked like a man who has had more surgeries than some of his competitors have had birthdays. He missed the cut by two measly shots.
Then there was Dustin Johnson. DJ is usually the king of "cool," but he looked totally lost on these greens. He finished at 9-over. When a two-time major winner and former World No. 1 can't break 75, you know the course is winning.
Justin Thomas also fell victim to the sand hills. He struggled to a 7-over total. It’s been a weird couple of years for JT, and missing the weekend at a major hurts his Ryder Cup standing and his own confidence. He wasn't alone, though. Other notable exits included:
- Max Homa (+6): Just couldn't get the putter to cooperate.
- Viktor Hovland (+6): A shocker, considering his recent form.
- Rickie Fowler (+8): Still searching for that elusive major-winning spark.
It’s brutal. One bad bounce into a bush and your week is over.
The Survivalists: Who Scraped By
Making the cut isn't always about playing "well." Sometimes it’s just about sucking less than everyone else.
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Take a guy like Brooks Koepka. He didn't have his best stuff on Friday. He was grinding. He looked like he wanted to snap a 7-iron over his knee. But he squeezed through. That’s the "major" DNA. He knows that once you make the weekend, anything can happen if the leaders stumble.
The leaderboards at the US Open are often deceptive. While the guys at the top like Bryson DeChambeau and Rory McIlroy were making the course look manageable, the guys hovering around that +5 line were in a literal fistfight with the terrain.
Why the US Open Cut is the Hardest in Golf
The Masters is an invitational; the field is small. The PGA Championship is a bit more of a "birdie-fest" compared to this. But the US Open? The USGA purposefully sets the course up to identify weaknesses.
If you can't hit a high, soft-landing long iron, you're dead.
If you can't lag putt from 60 feet over three different tiers, you're dead.
The pressure of knowing who made the cut at the US Open starts to mount around the 13th hole on Friday. You see players checking the leaderboards on every tee box. They aren't looking at who is winning. They are looking at that 60th-place line.
One interesting nuance of Pinehurst No. 2 is the "wiregrass." Unlike the heavy, thick rough at a place like Winged Foot or Oakmont, Pinehurst has sandy waste areas. You might get a perfect lie on hard-packed sand, or your ball might be wedged behind a clump of grass that looks like a Muppet’s hair. It’s total luck. Pros hate luck. They want control. The US Open denies them that control.
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The Amateur Success Stories
One of the coolest parts of this tournament is the "Open" part. Anyone with a low enough handicap can try to qualify.
This year, we saw a few amateurs really hold their own. Seeing a kid who was playing college golf two weeks ago outscore a LIV Golf superstar or a seasoned PGA Tour vet is why we watch. They don't know enough to be scared of the greens yet. They just aim and fire.
What Happens Now for the Top 74?
Moving into Saturday—"Moving Day"—the strategy shifts. For the guys who just barely made the cut, the pressure is off. They have nothing to lose. They can take aggressive lines and try to post a 66 or 67 to jump thirty spots up the leaderboard.
For the leaders, the nightmare is just beginning. The USGA usually stops watering the greens on Friday night. By Sunday afternoon, the course will be brown, fast, and borderline impossible.
How to Track Live Cut Lines in the Future
If you're trying to follow the cut line in real-time for future majors, don't just look at the raw score. Look at the "Projected Cut" on the official US Open app. It updates based on the field's live scoring average.
- The "Trend" Matters: If the wind picks up in the afternoon, the cut line usually moves "out" (e.g., from +4 to +5).
- The Late Wave: Players in the afternoon wave usually face tougher conditions. If the cut is +4 when the morning guys finish, expect it to move by at least a stroke as the greens dry out.
Actionable Takeaways for the Weekend
The tournament is far from over. If you're betting or just watching for fun, keep these factors in mind for the players who survived:
- Scrambling is King: Look at the "Strokes Gained: Around the Green" stats. The winner won't be the guy who hits the most greens; it will be the guy who makes the most pars after missing the green.
- Mental Fatigue: The players who spent Friday grinding just to make the cut might be emotionally spent. Watch for "hangover" rounds on Saturday morning.
- The DeChambeau Factor: Bryson is playing a different game. His ability to muscle the ball out of the sandy areas is a massive advantage over the "finesse" players.
- Watch the Pin Positions: On Saturday and Sunday, the USGA puts pins on "knobs." If you're an inch off, the ball rolls 40 yards away.
Making the cut at a US Open at Pinehurst is a badge of honor. It means you have the grit to handle failure and keep moving. For those who didn't make it, it's a long flight home and a lot of questions about their short game. For the rest, the gauntlet continues.
Next Steps for Golf Fans:
Check the official USGA leaderboard for the revised Saturday tee times. Usually, the players who just made the cut (+5) will tee off earliest, often in pairs, starting around 8:00 AM local time. If you want to see how the course plays before the leaders go out, watch those early groups—they are the "canaries in the coal mine" for the afternoon drama. Pay close attention to the 5th and 14th holes; if the early players are struggling there, the leaders are in for a long day.