The 2026 U. S.
Open begins Thursday, June 18, at Shinnecock Hills Golf Club in Long Island, New York.
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A field of 156 players will tackle the links course, which is hosting the national championship for the sixth time.
The course setup features thick five-inch rough, making accuracy essential. Early forecasts from golfchannel.
com indicate a 65 percent chance of rain on Thursday and persistent winds of 15 to 20 miles per hour throughout the tournament, with gusts up to 27 mph on Saturday.
Top Contenders and Odds
Scottie Scheffler enters as the betting favorite at +550 odds, according to cbssports. com.
He is aiming to complete the Career Grand Slam. Scheffler has finished in the top seven in four of his last five U.
S. Open appearances, though he has never played at Shinnecock Hills before.
Despite winning only once in 2026, half of his 12 starts this year have resulted in top-three finishes.
Rory McIlroy has the next shortest odds at +1200 as he seeks his second U. S.
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Open title, 15 years after his 2011 victory.
McIlroy ranks in the top five for total strokes gained and off-the-tee metrics but sits 125th in driving accuracy, which could be problematic on the undulating terrain.
Brooks Koepka, who won the 2018 U. S.
Open at Shinnecock Hills, enters with +2500 odds.
However, the SportsLine computer model, which simulates the event 10,000 times, predicts he will finish outside the top 25 due to recent struggles on the greens and off the tee.
Koepka has only one top-10 finish during his current PGA Tour return season.
Other notable contenders include Jon Rahm (+1300), Tommy Fleetwood (+2000), and Ludvig Aberg (+2200). Defending champion J.
J.
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Spaun is returning to form just in time for his title defense, while recent Byron Nelson winner Wyndham Clark enters the week showing strong form, though heavily reliant on his putting.
