Vogt struggles in U.S. Open first round, but keeps positive outlook
By Josh Rowntree, Director of Communications • June 12, 2025
OAKMONT — Matt Vogt walked up to the assembled media standing off the 18th green at Oakmont Country Club and had two words that perfectly summed up his first round of the 125th U.S. Open.
“Oakmont’s hard,” said Vogt, with a big laugh.
The Cranberry Township native, turned dentist, carded a 12-over score of 82 Thursday at the U.S. Open, placing him towards the bottom of the star-studded leaderboard.
“I’m going to practice a lot this afternoon,” he said. “I didn't break 80 in the (2021 U.S. Amateur) and I didn’t break 80 today. I’m going to try to at least break 80 tomorrow. It’s a hard golf course. It was brutal.”
The former Seneca Valley standout, who played briefly at Butler University and who punched a ticket to Oakmont through Local and Final Qualifying, was the first player off of the first tee Thursday morning in the 6:45 a.m. starting time.
Former Oakmont head professional Bob Ford announced his name and hometown before Vogt stepped over his ball to a warm cheer from a relatively large crowd assembled at around the club’s back porch.
“I sat with Mr. Ford at the amateur dinner last night and that was the longest I’ve been able to talk to him,” Vogt said. “I had a really nice time.
“I tried to lock it out as much as I could and at that moment. I was trying to hit a good tee ball and I didn’t really. It stings 15-20 minutes after my round but the only thing you can do as a golfer is try and do better and learn from it.
“It means a ton to hit that first tee ball. Honestly, there's so many people here in the city and at Oakmont that have been so awesome this week. Right now, playing poorly really stinks, but I know I’ll look back on it and feel good.”
That opening drive sailed far left, over the left rough, over the 9th hole’s fairway and into the rough.
Vogt, however, salvaged the hole, hitting a strong shot into the front of the downhill, sloped first green that, at the last U.S. Open at Oakmont, played as the course’s toughest hole. He two putted for par and went on to play just 1-over through the first four holes.
But then Oakmont started to win the battle.
“I made some really bad mental errors early on,” Vogt added. “You can’t make physical and mental errors, you can get away with one or the other, but you can’t get away with both. It feels like your head starts spinning out here.”
He posted double bogeys on the 5th and 7th holes and closed the front nine with a score of 41. He matched that number on the back nine, finishing his round with two bogeys and a double bogey, sliding down a leaderboard full of players plenty challenged by the notoriously challenging course.
“I settled in for a little during the front nine and hit some good shots,” he said. “I hit some poor shots starting around (the 8th hole). Oakmont is so penal, you can feel like you can go around here and not play that bad and shoot a really high score. There were nerves all day, for sure. It is what it is. It's the U.S. Open."
Despite the tough result, Vogt — a bit dejected — kept a smile through his post-round interview, continually spinning the undesirable outcome into a positive as he grapples with a week that for any amateur can be a bit overwhelming. Add in him being a native Western Pennsylvanian and full-time dentist, and the attention he’s received is a bit unusual.
“It’s been a lot to process,” said Vogt, who will tee off for his second round Friday at 12:30 p.m. “I honestly have tried to process why. I hope it is an inspiring story for others.
“I hope that I represented the city and Oakmont with pride today. I don’t want this to be all about me this week. All of this has been incredible. I hope to bring a lot of joy to the city."
For any media inquiries, please contact WPGA Director of Communications Josh Rowntree.
About the WPGA
Founded in 1899, the Western Pennsylvania Golf Association is the steward of amateur golf in the region. Started by five Member Clubs, the association now has nearly 200 Member Clubs and nearly 37,000 members. The WPGA conducts 14 individual competitions and 10 team events, and administers the WPGA Scholarship Fund and Western Pennsylvania Golf Hall of Fame.