Major golf championships don’t often offer the opportunity to expand a fan’s vocabulary, but this year’s US Open at the Los Angeles Country Club may do just that. Throughout his four days of the tournament, which begins Thursday, broadcasters, and perhaps golfers, are expected to use words on a daily basis that may be unfamiliar to many viewers around the world.
The word “barranca” (pronounced “barranka”) refers to narrow, winding, steep-walled canyons and river canyons common in the Southern California landscape.
The barranca on the North Course of the LA Country Club is used repeatedly throughout the 18 holes, especially for protection in and around the green. If the wrong golf ball falls into the barranca, it is out of play and a one-stroke penalty may be imposed. In other instances, it is expected to see a contestant descend on a barranca in hopes of rescuing a golf ball. This may have been a successful workaround, or it may have simply provided a better picture. A golfer submerged a few feet below the fairway sprinted off for par.
However, LA Country Club Barranca is far from a random curiosity in course layout. It plays an important and effective role in drainage during the wet season and adds a natural, rugged beauty to the course design born in the 1920s. But by the 2010s, grass covered much of Barranca, with tributaries running in multiple directions and meandering across the property. Completed in 2017, the site renovations have worked with golf architect Gil Hans, his design partner Jim Wagner, and design consultant Jeff Shackelford to restore Barranca to its original appearance. Restored for tactical purposes.
Problems first arise on the second hole of the 497-yard par 4, where players face a long approach shot over the barranca. Golfers will encounter Barranca five more times on the front nine.
On the 520-yard par 4 17th, Hanse removed a few trees to reveal a serpentine barranca from the tee, reminding players of the dangers lurking. Sunday’s final round could test the nerves of the tournament leaders entering the penultimate hole of the championship.
“Barranca just flows throughout,” John Bodenhammer, chief championship officer of the U.S. Golf Association, which hosts the U.S. Open, said Wednesday. “There is beauty in how to use it.”
Bodenhammer added that Barranca had three feet of water when he visited the site in March. The water level was still 2 feet last month. But Mr Shackelford said Wednesday that Barranca is now mostly sandy or dry, which was expected and desirable conditions after June’s rainfall was limited.
“You’ll see players play with them, and that’s how they intended it,” Bodenhammer said. “You’re going to see a lot of heroic shots and excitement. Barranca is really great.”
It can be especially useful for those who want to expand their vocabulary.
