PINEHURST, N.C. — More than 250,000 spectators are coming to watch the U.S. Open this week. Each day, 300 of those visitors arrive by train.
Amtrak created a special stop just for the event, and the riders say it was an exciting start to their day in Pinehurst.
“I just wanted to do it for fun,” Tessie Taylor said. “And it's totally worth it.”
As people stepped off the Open Express at the Pinehurst Clubhouse, excitement was in the air.
“It was their excitement that sort of stimulates you,” Taylor said. “You know, the people are excited about coming to where I take for granted every day. But they're really excited about it. And it’s nice to see people want to come to your hometown.”
Taylor took a short ride on the train from Southern Pines and loved every minute of it. The Open Express runs from Raleigh to Pinehurst as a convenient travel option for visitors.
“This is the first time not actually working the event,” Taylor said. “So you have more fun, you’re relaxed, and you're not in a tizzy to get from place to place. You just go and take your time and meander around and enjoy it.”
Taylor’s grandmother worked at the Pinehurst Clubhouse years ago, and her granddaughter is a greeter there this week. So, helping out at these tournaments is a family tradition.
“The legacy of family participation, you know, the legacy of the town,” Taylor said. “Pinehurst has always been kind of family-oriented. And this is just an expansion of that.”
The Menzies family also has a legacy here. Robert Menzies was here for the first U.S. Open at Pinehurst in 1999.
“This is the fourth one now,” Menzies said. “So I've been at all of them, and it's exciting.”
Now he gets to enhance the visitor experience with a special bar train and a view. The vintage train and the Open Express will be available for visitors through the end of the tournament.
For those who came to Pinehurst by train, the Open Express leaves daily at 6:30 p.m.
