When you tune in tomorrow and begin a full weekend of television viewing of the U.S. Open Championship, keep in mind that Congressional Country Club--the site of this year's Open--once served as a training ground during World War II.
In 1943, soldiers who arrived at this secret destination--part of a new covert operation called the Office of Strategic Services (OSS)--discovered a city of tents spread out on the vast acreage. Yet, overlooking this tent city was an impressive, Mediterranean-style clubhouse--Congressional Country Club--a visible sign of what the acreage used to be.
The club, 12 miles outside of Washington, D.C., leased its 400+ acres to the U.S. government during the war for the purpose of a training ground for the OSS, which was America's first intelligence agency. What was once the practice range became a rifle range. Bunkers were used for grenade practice. The dense wooded areas around the course were used for commando exercises.
On the fairways, men crawled on their bellies while live machine gun fire arced over their heads. And the greens, once targets for golf balls, became targets for mortars.
It's a wonder the course recovered and is in use today given how it was under siege in these practice activities from 1943 through the end of WWII. After the war, the government restored the club to its original beauty and it became a gathering place for the elite of Washington. Over time, Presidents, cabinet members, and other government influencers teed it up at Congressional.
Congressional has hosted two previous U.S. Opens along with a PGA Championship. And, while it's 7,500 plus yards will offer a stern test of this weekend's golfers, the challenge will pale compared to what OSS recruits endured during those training months of 1943. Said one OSS veteran, who's still alive today, "There was nothing ordinary about our training because there was nothing ordinary about what they were asking us to do in battle. We might have to operate completely by ourselves behind enemy lines. We had to be ready for anything."
(Source: The New York Times)
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