Oakland Hills South first time - Monster or museum?

[HoleInOne_Holly]

Played Oakland Hills South last Thursday in a member-guest. Shot 91 and honestly felt like I got away with something.

Quick context: I'm a 7 index, play mostly public stuff in the Midwest, so this was a big deal. Got the invite from a buddy whose uncle has been a member since the 90s. Weather was perfect, maybe 75, wind out of the northwest at 10-15.

The thing that got me was the greens. Not the speed, they were rolling maybe 11.5, but the tilt. Every single green seems to feed somewhere you don't want to be. Hole 1, I hit what I thought was a perfect 8 iron and it rolled off the back into a chipping area I didn't even know existed. Welcome to the Monster I guess.

The par 3s are the real story. 9, 13, 17. I made a 5 on 9 after hitting the green. Three putt from like 25 feet because the pin was on a shelf. And 17 is just mean, 200+ yards uphill to a green that runs away from you.

What surprised me: it's not as long as I expected. 7,400 from the tips but they had us at 6,900 and it played plenty. The bunkering is what kills you. Fairway bunkers that are somehow 15 feet deep on a flat hole. Church pews get all the attention (and yeah, they're brutal, I was in the third one on 15 and just laughed) but the greenside stuff is what wrecked my card.

Also the clubhouse is a time capsule. Trophy room alone is worth the trip.

So is it still a Monster? Yeah, I think so. But it's a thinking Monster. You can't just bash driver everywhere, which honestly I appreciated. Felt more like a chess match than a beatdown. Although my scorecard would disagree.

Anyone else played it recently? Curious if the rough is always that thick or if they were prepping for something.