Matt Every On TPC Sawgrass: “It’s the worst-conditioned course in Jacksonville, day in and day out."
/Ken Willis talked to Jacksonville resident and grass expert Matt Every after he followed up his 76 with a 77 at The Players, and even though he admitted he just "stinks right now," Every slammed the conditioning of the the TPC Sawgrass.
From Willis's story:
“Honestly, the way this course is now, it’s like a regular Tuesday throughout the year,” he said of the Tour’s home 18. “It’s the worst-conditioned course in Jacksonville, day in and day out. And it blows my mind. It just makes no sense at all.”
The putting surfaces are a sore subject this year, with blame pointed mostly toward a long winter and, reportedly in the case of a few greens, bad choice and use of a chemical spray.
But, Every said Friday, “It has nothing to do with the bad greens this year. I’m all right with that. Human error happens. That’s not it. It’s just not good. The greens are very slow. And the fringes . . . the grain is just . . . I’ve seen less grain at Miami munies than here. It’s just unbelievable. I just don’t get it."
Now I just came off the course to see this and while there is no question the greens lack any aesthetic charm, the ball is rolling beautifully.
Here's what Geoff Ogilvy said about the greens after a second round 70 that left him at -5, seven back of the lead:
"Most of them are pretty good. There are some spots that are pretty poor, obviously the spots that everyone had heard about before the week. But the pins are a long way from them, you have to putt over them in some spots but usually it’s the first half of your putt and the ball is rolling fast, so the putt’s not really affected. If they hadn’t told us we would have got here and this isn’t a big deal.”
As for Every's suggestion of severe grain or anything lack in the tee to fringe excellence of the course, he's not even close to being accurate. Here's guessing he's associating the rough winter conditions with his terrible play.
