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Yahoo
11-06-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
11 Investigates: What goes into keeping the best golfers in the world safe at the U.S. Open
The best professional golfers in the world are in Oakmont this week for the U.S. Open. RELATED COVERAGE >>> 2025 U.S. Open at Oakmont Country Club: What you need to know So, what goes into keeping them safe on and off the golf course? Chief Investigator Rick Earle spoke with the USGA about security efforts for the game's biggest stars. Advertisement Earle learned it's a big job that's been in the planning stages for months. Fans will see police officers and security guards on the golf course and there will be even more security around some of the bigger names, especially during the final round of the tournament. 'They're going to have that added level of security in and around their areas, just knowing that they draw the crowds. Obviously, once they come on site, they're going to have that security detail that they need in and around the player-centric areas on the golf course itself,' said Eric Steimer, the USGA senior director of U.S. Open Championships. Steimer said rope lines will be set up to keep fans at a safe distance from the golfers, but he says there's plenty of prime viewing. Advertisement 'We'll establish rope lines where fans can follow their favorite golfers all 18 holes, sit in some great grandstand locations that provide panoramic views,' Steimer said. Local and state police, along with nearly 300 private security guards, will be on hand. Some officers will blend in with the crowd. 'We have undercover officers, escort details, as well as a lot of security position out on the golf course,' Steimer said. 'Someone like Scottie Scheffler, Rory McIlroy, they may have some private security with them,' said John Hudson, a retired Secret Service agent and security consultant. Hudson is very familiar with Oakmont Country Club. Advertisement During the last U.S Open in 2016, he operated a drone for the Allegheny County District Attorney's office. Hudson told Earle that fans will notice a heightened level of security on the final day of the tournament. 'Probably on the last day, Sunday, when you have the foursomes that tee off that match, the higher profile shooters, you'll have security with that, that package as well, walking along the fairways,' Hudson said. The USGA is also relying on drones this time around, as well as a network of surveillance cameras and metal detectors to secure the sprawling 380-acre golf course. They want to ensure that, in the end, the best players in the world concentrate on one thing and one thing only. Advertisement 'Really, once they're out there competing for our national championship, we want to make sure their focus stays on that and not on security,' Steimer said. The USGA told Earle that information about where the golfers stay while they're in Pittsburgh and what they do and where they go outside the course is all kept confidential. Download the FREE WPXI News app for breaking news alerts. Follow Channel 11 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch WPXI NOW
Yahoo
09-06-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
11 Investigates gets a behind the scenes look at U.S. Open at Oakmont security measures
With more than 200,000 visitors expected to attend the US Open at Oakmont Country Club, the USGA told Chief Investigator Rick Earle that the safety and security of fans and golfers is a top concern. Earle recently visited Oakmont to meet with a representative from the USGA to talk about security measures. Advertisement As workers were putting the finishing touches on the fairways and buildings around the golf course, the USGA was fine-tuning the security plan. 'For us, the thing that's first in paramount importance is the safety, the security and the health of anyone coming to the championship over the course of those seven days,' said Eric Steimer, the USGA Senior Director for US Open Championships. For months now, the USGA has been working with local and state law enforcement on a detailed security plan. 'So, we're good at operating golf championships, but we know our role in security. We really turn to our law enforcement partners to make sure that our plans are buttoned up, leaning into their expertise and what their recommendations are,' Steimer said. Advertisement Plum Borough Police Department is the lead agency, but they'll get help from other local departments, including Oakmont, Allegheny County and Pennsylvania State Police. 'You may have resources brought in from the county, whether it's the command post, mobile command post area,' said John Hudson, a retired Secret Service agent and security consultant. Hudson helped with security during the last US Open by operating drones for the District Attorney's office. The USGA said a 360-degree perimeter will be set up around the sprawling 380-acre course that is enclosed by a fence. Earle: Because it's such a big layout, is it harder to secure? Advertisement Hudson: No, it's actually easier to secure because they have a physical boundary around there with the fence and the limited access points. Police officers, some working undercover, will be stationed inside and outside the course. Fans must go through a metal detector system that the USGA began using a couple of years ago that allows more people in at one time. 'Ultimately, that magnetometer is going to pick up on any items that it hits on that will require potentially a second security measure, whether it's a hand wand or a divest situation where ultimately once that item is rendered safe, you'll be allowed to bring it in,' Steimer said. Advertisement Surveillance cameras and drones will also be used this year. 'So we'll have eyes in the sky, so to speak, which allows us to really be able to respond to any incidents, whether it's a security issue, whether it is a health issue, but really it takes a small army of security out here to make sure that everything is going smoothly and that's not something we're going to skimp on,' Steimer said. In addition to local and state law enforcement officers, the USGA told Earle they will have nearly 300 private security guards to help out as well. Download the FREE WPXI News app for breaking news alerts. Follow Channel 11 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch WPXI NOW
