Oakmont is the angriest golf course in America.
That’s not hyperbole. It’s been the site of more US Opens than any other course, and it has never been accused of being fair. The greens are so fast that the USGA has sandbagged them before every major — and they’re still terrifying. The bunkers are so deep that you can’t see the green from the bottom. The Church Pews are a fairway bunker that stretches 100 yards, contains 12 parallel rows of grass, and exists solely to make you wish you’d stayed home.
On GSPro, BigFudge’s version captures all of it. It’s one of the most brutally accurate course reproductions in the entire library.
Why Oakmont Matters on Sim
Oakmont is the ultimate test of iron play. The greens are small, fast, and protected by bunkers that are genuinely penal. A missed approach at Oakmont doesn’t leave you a chip — it leaves you a 40-yard bunker shot from a pit that’s deeper than your height.
The Church Pews on hole 3 and hole 4 are the most famous hazard in American golf. A 100-yard-long bunker with grass ridges. If you find it, you’re not just punching out — you’re deciding which groove to hit from, whether to take an unplayable, and whether the designer of this course sleeps well at night. (He doesn’t. Henry Fownes said Oakmont was designed to be “a complete test of golf.” He was lying. It’s a complete test of your patience.)
On GSPro, the Church Pews are rendered accurately enough that you’ll feel the same despair. The ridges are there. The depth is there. The bunker is as intimidating as the real thing.
Finding the Right Version
BigFudge is the name you want. He’s the best designer of American championship courses on GSPro, and his Oakmont is one of his best builds.
Search “Oakmont” in Course Manager. BigFudge’s version should be the top result by downloads. If there are multiple versions, pick the one with the most recent date and the highest download count.
There are older Oakmont builds by other designers. Most of them are fine. None of them are as good as BigFudge’s. The difference is in the greens — BigFudge’s version has the correct slopes and speeds. The older versions have greens that are too flat, which defeats the entire purpose of Oakmont.
Search term: “Oakmont”
What It Actually Looks Like
BigFudge used LIDAR data for the elevation, and it shows. Oakmont’s fairways are deceptively sloped — they look flat on TV but the ball runs, kicks, and settles in positions that make the next shot harder. The GSPro version captures this.
The bunkers are deep. Visually, they look like bunkers instead of brown patches. The Church Pews on hole 3 are rendered as a series of grass ridges inside a massive sand trap. You’ll see it, you’ll aim away from it, and you’ll probably still find it.
The greens are the standout feature. They’re fast. Really fast. Set them to tournament speed in the conditions menu and you’ll three-putt from 15 feet. Set them to US Open speed and you’ll three-putt from 8 feet. That’s not a bug. That’s Oakmont.
Playing Oakmont the Right Way
Conditions: Firm. Always firm. Oakmont without firm conditions is a different course. The ball needs to run. The approaches need to roll out. The greens need to be hard enough that a well-struck iron stops on the second hop and a mediocre one runs through the green into a bunker you can’t see.
Tees: Championship tees. Oakmont is 7,200+ yards from the tips. That’s shorter than a lot of modern US Open courses, but the yardage is misleading — every hole plays uphill or downhill, the greens are tiny, and the rough is thick. You’ll feel every yard.
Wind: 10-15 mph. Oakmont is in Pennsylvania, not Scotland. But the wind matters because the greens are so fast. A 10-foot putt with a crosswind breaks more than you expect. Get used to it.
The greens: The single most important thing about Oakmont is understanding that the greens are the defense. Not the bunkers. Not the rough. The greens. They’re small, they’re fast, and they slope in ways that make a 4-foot putt feel like a 20-foot putt. The GSPro version nails this. If you’re putting well, you’ll score. If you’re not, you’ll card an 88 and wonder why you bought a simulator.
The Holes That Shine on Sim
Hole 3 — The Church Pews: The most famous hazard in American golf. On GSPro, you’ll see the full scope of it — 100 yards of sand and grass ridges running parallel to the fairway. The smart play is to lay up short of it. The fun play is to try to carry it. The smart play is the right play. Hit a 3-wood, leave yourself 150 yards, and don’t be a hero.
Hole 8 — The short par 3: 288 yards from the championship tees. That’s not a typo. It’s a 288-yard par 3. On GSPro, you’ll hit driver. You’ll probably miss. The green is surrounded by bunkers and the putting surface is so sloped that a ball landing on the wrong tier will roll off the front. It’s absurd. It’s wonderful.
Hole 18 — The closing par 4: A 484-yard par 4 with bunkers on the left and the clubhouse in the background. On GSPro, the approach shot is one of the best in the library — you’re hitting to a raised green with a false front, bunkers on both sides, and the knowledge that you’ve been playing this course for 3 hours and it has not given you a single thing for free.
What I’d Change
The visual texture of the rough is a bit flat. Oakmont’s rough is famously thick — the USGA has let it grow to 5 inches before some Opens. On GSPro, the rough is penal but doesn’t look as menacing as the real thing. Minor complaint. The course plays correctly even if the visual presentation isn’t quite as intimidating as the real Oakmont.
Why This Matters
Oakmont is one of the hardest courses in the world. Having it on GSPro — for free, with your subscription — means you can test yourself against the same course that produced the 2007 Cabrera win, the 2016 DJ controversy, and the 2025 winner. If you want to know how good your game really is, Oakmont will tell you. The answer will probably be “not as good as I thought.”
Go download it. Try to break 90. Try to break 85. Try to two-putt from the back of the 8th green. That’s Oakmont.
For a full breakdown of how GSPro compares to the competition, read the GSPro Software Review. Want more course recommendations? See the full list in The Best Courses on GSPro.