Bethpage's length isn't a huge issue

It would be easy to assume, then, that the players preparing for the 109th US Open are moaning about the course length, worried that only golf’s biggest hitters can contend, and taking the US Golf Association to task for such an imposing setup.

Actually, the pretournament noise has been sweet music to the ears of golf’s US governing body. Listening to players describe the Black Course, the buzzwords are “challenging,’’ “difficult,’’ and “fair,’’ which is exactly what the USGA seeks from its national championship venues.

The same was said about Bethpage Black in 2002, when it became the first municipal course to host the US Open. Seven years later, it still features plenty of sharp teeth, but has been slightly softened at the edges. What it offers now is 7,445 yards of pressure and pitfalls, with four days (or five, depending on the weather or a playoff) separating someone from a well-deserved trophy.

“It’s one of the finest golf courses I’ve ever played. Very fair, extremely strong,’’ said Paul Casey, who didn’t play at Bethpage in 2002. “I happen to think it’s an absolutely brilliant setup.’’

Most of the holes are nearly identical to the ones in 2002, when Tiger Woods was the only under-par finisher. A few changes have been made: Back tee boxes built, bunkers added where certain drives land, and - gasp! - slightly wider fairways. The 10th fairway, which some players couldn’t reach in 2002, has been brought 35 yards closer to the tee.

The biggest change is the implementation of the graduated rough. Instead of the long, thick mess off the fairways that the US Open was long known for, the rough gets more severe the farther it gets from the fairway, with players able to advance it after just missing the fairway instead of simply hacking it back out with a wedge.

Weather, as always, will play a big role in how the USGA sets up the course. Already wet from steady precipitation the past two months, more rain is forecast for the rest of the week. It will make the course play longer because of the lack of roll, but will also force the USGA to think about using some forward tees. Jim Hyler, the organization’s chairman of the championship committee, said the course will never play as long as the stated yardage.

“Every day we’ll be using shorter teeing grounds on certain holes,’’ Hyler said.

One thing you won’t see, unlike the past few US Opens, is an extremely short par 4 that might tempt some players to try to drive the green. Hyler said none of the holes at Bethpage Black will allow that opportunity.

Competitors will be faced with long carries and uphill approach shots to greens protected by thick rough and deep bunkers. With only one par 4 measuring less than 400 yards (the 389-yard second hole), players will be forced to hit lots of drivers, with accuracy off the tee always one of the biggest keys at the US Open. When you factor in some of the longer par 4s - No. 5 (478 yards), No. 9 (460), No. 10 (508), No. 12 (504), No. 15 (459), and No. 16 (490) - playing out of the fairway will be imperative.

“The difficulty of Bethpage is how long it is,’’ said 2006 US Open winner Geoff Ogilvy. “It’s not that hard if you hit it on the fairway, but length becomes hard when you miss the fairway. Now you’ve got 3-irons out of the rough, and 3-irons aren’t designed to go out of the rough very well.’’

Green speed, typically an issue, likely won’t be this year, because the wet conditions will prevent the USGA from creating the firm, fast surface it prefers.

As always, the US Open will be just as much a mental test as a physical one. This isn’t the week to bomb it off the tee, find it, then fire it at the flag. Success in a US Open requires strategy, and strategy demands patience.

“You have to have every facet of your game going,’’ said Woods, a three-time US Open winner who is looking to win back-to-back US Opens for the first time. “You have to drive the ball well. You have to hit your irons well. This is the hardest major we face, year in, year out. Narrowest fairways, highest rough.’’

It’s a challenging combination, but then again, the US Open isn’t supposed to be easy. It’s tough to get in, and tougher to win. For seven years, the Long Island locals have waited patiently, eager to again throw a party and share their pride and joy.

The wait’s over. The “People’s Open’’ has come back to Bethpage Black.