North Carolina shines at the U.S. Open at Pinehurst

Unbelievable golf tournament, that was .

Yes, but: To be very serious for a minute. The most delightful moment of the U.S. Open for North Carolinians in attendance at Pinehurst was that glorious breath when we turned into the food vendors' area and saw the words Merritt's Store and Grill.

Why it matters: Bacon. Lettuce. Tomato.

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• Yes, this was that Merritt's, the Chapel Hill institution, serving up their world-famous " love sandwich " to the general public. We had at least four between us over the week.

What else we ate

Several North Carolina businesses snagged prime marketing at the tournament, including Parker's Barbecue out of Wilson, which catered in various hospitality tents, as did Raleigh's HotBox pizza .

• Sunset Beach's Sunset Slush (mango is Michael's flavor of choice) and Charlotte's Sweet Lew's Barbecue (hey, Lewis) also had a presence throughout the week.
• Hillsborough peanut butter maker Big Spoon Roasters ' Figgy Chai bars were among the most popular snacks media members took with them to the course.

And there's Slice Pie Company from Raleigh. Owner Kristen Mullins and her father Michael served their pecan and chocolate chess goodness to players, their families, and media members over the course of the week. It's another chapter in the very … rich … story of the business.

• Mullins left her corporate job a decade ago because she wanted to do something with her passion and the family recipes, and to set an example for her then-2-year-old daughter.
• Mullins now has a storefront on South Saunders in Raleigh, and she caters to the stars who come through Raleigh's larger venues.
• Among the people who've recently been served Slice Pie — Snoop Dogg, Lizzo, Dave Grohl ... and us.

Chocolate chess pie meets pecan pie meets our belly. Photo: Michael Graff/Axios

We didn't just eat. We did watch golf, talked to golfers, and worked off a few, but likely not all, calories in the high-90s heat.

Here are a few other odds and ends we noticed in and around Pinehurst this week.

Who we watched while eating

Akshay Bhatia , the uber-talented 22-year-old from Wake Forest, made striking shots throughout the weekend — including an 84-foot chip shot on the eighth hole Saturday.

• Bhatia, who generates an incredible amount of distance despite his thin frame, had a hometown following throughout the tournament.
• He finished at 3-over and tied for 16th, his best performance at a major. But he told reporters he was still striving for more. "Bitter taste in my mouth for how I played ... I'm looking forward to another opportunity like this," he told reporters after the final round.

Michael McGowan hit the opening shot of the championship on Thursday, just after sunrise. McGowan is a Southern Pines resident whose grandmother, Peggy Kirk Bell, is an icon here.

• Kirk Bell co-owned Pine Needles, which has hosted four U.S. Women's Open and sits just a few miles from No. 2, for nearly seven decades until her death in 2016 at age 95 .
• McGowan missed the cut, but will keep the memory. "The sun was coming out between the trees on the right and everyone was cheering," he said afterward . "A very cool moment for me."

Akshay Bhatia, from Wake Forest, celebrates making an 84-foot chip shot birdie on the eighth hole during the third round Saturday. Photo: Ross Kinnaird/Getty Images

What we overheard about eating

Raleigh native and Charlotte resident Webb Simpson got to the driving range early on Friday and had it mostly to himself, meaning folks standing behind him could hear his conversation with his caddie clearly as he talked about the Fresh Market fish he ate on Thursday night.

• Simpson, a 38-year-old father of five, also laid out his ideal sleep schedule — 9:45pm to bed, and 6:15am wakeup.
• That's a contrast with the younger Bryson DeChambeau, who on Friday was already excited about his late tee time on Saturday.
• "I like going to bed late and waking up late," DeChambeau said. "So I won't be getting up at 8am."

What we read about eating

England's Sam Bairstow has the distinction of having the worst score of all rounds of the U.S. Open, an 84 on Thursday. He could've gone to the clubhouse or brewery or any of Pinehurst's restaurants and drowned his misery.

• Instead, he told No Laying Up's Kevin Van Valkenburg he stopped at the Chick-fil-A down the way. "It was obviously a bit demoralizing after all the work I'd put in this week," Bairstow told Van Valkenburg of his opening round. "Chick-Fil-As tend to cheer me up."

And other stuff

Amtrak's special U.S. Open Express, which traveled from Raleigh to just outside of Pinehurst No. 2, proved to be a popular mode of transit every day of the tournament.

• Especially because the scene ride also served Moscow Mules in a can and an off-menu Bloody Mary, according to The News & Observer's Andrew Carter .

Australian golfer Min Woo Lee's first encounter with the Sandhills' native Fox Squirrel.

• "Hello, Pinehurst. What is this animal? Is it a skunk or a raccoon or a squirrel?" Lee asked his Instagram followers.