Perfection Is Boring

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Thanks to reader Rob for noting Lorne Rubenstein's column pondering the perfection of Muirfield Village's conditioning and role that such pristine conditions play in the game.

The problem is that golfers, and not only tour professionals, expect perfect conditions in modern golf. They want to know that a ball hit into a spot in the fairway will stay there and not careen madly off a firm slope into a bunker. When they do find sand, they expect a perfect lie. They also expect the sand to be the same in every bunker on the course.

Nicklaus took some action in this regard. He furrowed the bunkers last year so that not every ball that settles into the sand will sit up. Some players whined. The furrows aren't as deep this year, but they're still furrowed. "Bunkers are meant to be a hazard," Nicklaus said. "Why have them otherwise?"

That's a good point. Nevertheless, Muirfield Village and most every PGA Tour course still offers ideal conditions. But golf was never meant to be played on courses so produced and contrived that they might as well be domed. Barring wild weather or stupidly narrow fairways and rough so high that there's no shot to play but a hard thwack out, today's courses are mostly the same and mostly boring.

 

Furrow Specs

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Craig Dolch in the Palm Beach Post offers this on Jack Nicklaus's bunker furrowing plans for this week's Memorial:

This year, though, the tines on the rakes won't be spread as far apart as last year — they'll be 13/4 inches this year as opposed to 21/2 inches in 2006 — but the effect will be the same.

"All I want them to say is, 'That's a place I don't want to be,' " Nicklaus said Friday at his North Palm Beach offices. "I don't care about penalizing the guy. I'm trying to force him to play the strategy of the golf course by not wanting to be in a bunker. Guys aim for bunkers because it's an easy shot."

McCabe On TPC Boston

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The Boston Globe's Jim McCabe files the first review of Gil Hanse and Brad Faxon's TPC Boston redo. Unfortunately, no photos with the story online or at the club's web site.

Dramatic new bunkering with grass that falls back into the sand caught the group's attention at many holes, starting at the first, and a series of "chocolate drops," which are mounds of grass-covered dirt, now lend character to holes. Aesthetically, TPC Boston looks so much better than before that Hanse should be considered a miracle-worker. He has done what any great designer strives to do -- players will not only have to think their way around , they'll have to hit a variety of shots.

Of course, fickle PGA Tour players surely will critique the changes. Those involved are especially eager to hear the reaction to the par-4 fourth, changed from a goofy, dogleg right of 425 yards to a fairly straight and drivable par-4 of 299 yards -- but one that features a green that can't be more than 3,300 square feet and provides demanding shots from just off the green. So, fire away, laddies.

Dramatic, too, are the changes to the par-5 seventh, which now features a cross bunker roughly 140 yards from the green and creative greenside mounding, and to the par-5 18th, to which Hanse has added a strip of rough stretching out from a bunker. The par-3 16th? It is shorter, but now the green sits closer to the pond, so it's a more daunting shot. The par-4 17th? It might just be the best hole on the back nine, a brilliant piece of work that features one large grassy mound on each side of the fairway, but just enough room for those players who feel they can thread a draw between them.

Will some players moan? Sure. It's usually the second order of business at tournaments, after hopping into the courtesy car.

That's one part of the equation that isn't new.

DNP's

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I'm not sure about Zach Johnson's claim regarding the field in Atlanta, at least based on the DNP's in the FedEx Cup standings...

1 1 Tiger Woods 7 16,716 DNP 3 5
2 2 Phil Mickelson 12 15,818 DNP 2 5
3 3 Vijay Singh 14 13,661 DNP 2 4
4 9 Zach Johnson 12 12,327 1 2 4
5 4 Charles Howell III 14 11,856 CUT 1 5
6 5 Adam Scott 8 8,641 DNP 1 3
7 6 John Rollins 14 8,391 DNP
3
8 7 Luke Donald 12 8,121 DNP
5
9 8 Mark Calcavecchia 13 8,044 DNP 1 4
10 10 Aaron Baddeley 12 7,809 DNP 1 4
11 11 Boo Weekley 15 7,717 CUT 1 3
12 12 Sergio Garcia 9 6,977 DNP
4
13 13 Rory Sabbatini 14 6,672 T24
4
14 18 Henrik Stenson 7 6,618 T9 1 2
15 14 Geoff Ogilvy 11 6,377 DNP
3
16 15 Nick Watney 12 6,140 DNP 1 2
17 16 Steve Stricker 12 6,107 DNP
4
18 17 Robert Allenby 12 6,079 DNP
6
19 19 Scott Verplank 11 5,970 DNP 1 2
20 20 Mark Wilson 12 5,609 DNP 1 1
21 21 Jeff Quinney 13 5,376 DNP
5
22 22 Ken Duke 14 5,308 DNP
4
23 23 Bubba Watson 13 5,281 DNP
4
24 24 Charley Hoffman 15 5,232 CUT 1 1
25 25 Ernie Els 8 5,216 DNP
2
26 26 Paul Goydos 10 5,103 DNP 1 1
27 27 Trevor Immelman 11 5,047 DNP
3
28 28 Brett Wetterich 14 5,016 DNP
3
29 29 Heath Slocum 12 4,898 CUT
3
30 74 Ryuji Imada 16 4,844 2
2
31 30 Anthony Kim 13 4,702 DNP
4
32 31 Jim Furyk 11 4,701 DNP
3
33 34 Stewart Cink 12 4,680 T24
3
34 32 Jose Coceres 6 4,548 DNP
3
35 33 Vaughn Taylor 13 4,524 W/D
3
36 35 Jerry Kelly 13 4,437 DNP
4
37 36 K.J. Choi 14 4,381 DNP
3
38 37 Stuart Appleby 12 4,276 DNP
2
39 39 David Toms 12 4,209 T30
4
40 42 Kevin Sutherland 13 4,136 T16
1
41 38 John Senden 12 4,126 DNP
2
42 60 Camilo Villegas 12 4,031 T3
2
43 40 Justin Rose 6 3,882 DNP
3
44 41 Bart Bryant 13 3,861 CUT
2
45 43 Ian Poulter 10 3,640 DNP
3
46 44 Rocco Mediate 10 3,574 DNP
2
47 45 Lucas Glover 14 3,504 DNP
2
48 46 Brandt Snedeker 15 3,479 DNP
1
49 47 John Mallinger 14 3,423 DNP
2
50 48 Padraig Harrington 9 3,255 DNP
2

 

"It's too early to call it a bust, but it's not too early to be concerned about its utter lack of buzz."

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Golf.com's Gary Van Sickle gets all curmudgeonly about 2007's disappointments. Two that stood out for his crisp assessments:

10. The FedEx Cup The PGA Tour has tried to force feed us the points standings. The Golf Channel keeps cramming the points list down our throats. Still, no one cares. Nothing seems to be at stake. The race to the FedEx Cup playoffs? Hardly, since 144 players qualify. Which is everybody who is anybody. And why keep track of the points since they're just going to be reset for the playoffs? There is no drama, no interest and no reason to get interested in the FedEx Cup points standings yet. It's too early to call it a bust, but it's not too early to be concerned about its utter lack of buzz.

That's just so wrong. After all, if the playoffs started today, Anders Hansen would not be in them. Gary, you can't buy tension like that!

Moving on, I think this assessment is consistent with what we've seen in the past. Namely, that time tends to put over-the-top course setups into perspective...

3. The Masters It was disappointing that what I've been writing for the last five years was proven correct, that Augusta National with firm and fast conditions and some wind is the toughest golf course in the world. For three days, conditions were so difficult and greens so firm that nobody could make many birdies. Never have so many good shots turned out not so good. As a result, the best players weren't able to separate themselves from the pack. Skill was equalized. It wasn't until Masters officials saw the light and softened the greens for Sunday's final that we began to see the familiar birdies and eagles and hear the familiar roars from Amen Corner. Former chairman Hootie Johnson was right to lengthen and tough the course but went a bit too far. It doesn't need rough — or whatever quaint term they call it — and it doesn't need all those extra trees planted on 7, 11 and 15. For the first time in recent memory, the Masters came close to being boring for three days.

"Everybody that teed it up this week, for the most part ... is going to be in the top 50, top 30, top 15 players in the world.’’

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Golfweek's Travis Hill takes an entertaining look at the weekend's more outlandish quotes and happenings, including the above Zach Johnson quote along with those painfully embarrassing final day interviews with the VP of Painfully Embarrassing Final Day Interviews (I'm guess Hill was inspired to rant after Peter Kostis's breathless Q&A at the AT&T).

Huggan On Phil and Tiger

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John Huggan makes a couple of good points in his look at the possibility of a Tiger-Phil "rivalry"...

Only 21 days into his new relationship with instructor Butch Harmon, Mickelson played the closing 18 holes of the so-called fifth major in Woods-like fashion, hitting green after green in regulation - 16 of 18 under the pressure of the fourth round - until no-one was left to take him on. It was a fine victory, and a beautifully- constructed round of golf.

Amid the understandable euphoria, however, it must be said that Mickelson has a way to go before he can look Woods in the eye consistently. A closer look at Lefty's numbers from Sawgrass reveals that his driving accuracy and greens-hit percentages were actually a little down on his season average. Which is no surprise.

Huh...go figure. 

Slow Play Claiming More Victims?

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Admittedly, I take some perverse pleasure in seeing how slow play is about to claim more victims, even though the problem is not entirely the fault of the players.

Still, as Doug Ferguson reports, the tepid pace of play on the PGA Tour may force a cut in the number of players teeing it up on the weekend check.

Now, the PGA Tour again is looking at changing the longtime policy that the top 70 and ties make the cut. Several alternatives were discussed last week by the Player Advisory Council, and it likely will come up at the tour policy board meeting at the end of the month.

Among the options:

-Top 60 players and ties.

-Top 65 players and ties.

-The nearest number to 70 players.

-Top 70 and ties, but if the number goes over 78, revert to nearest to 70.

-Top 70 and ties make the cut on Friday, and another cut on Saturday for top 70 and ties.

And your buried lede of the week...

One reason the cut policy is under review is to cope with pace of play. When a large number of players make the cut and bad weather is in the forecast, officials have little choice but to play in threesomes off both tees. That can really become a problem on the West Coast, where tournaments typically end at 3 p.m. for network television.

I wish Tiger had taken a slightly different stand...

Tiger Woods said he would favour top 60 and ties, no exceptions.

"Play better," he said. "Either you play better or you don't."

Or play faster? Or setup courses with a little less rough, fewer 2-paces-from-the-edge-holes and maybe the players stand a chance of picking up the pace?

Oh and do something with the ball so that the entire field can't reach every par-5 in two.

"It appeared the boys were stinking up the gym. That speaks of one thing..."

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I only watched a few minutes of the sixth major (love the blue jacket for the winner...how original!).

However I noticed on the Golfweek.com Tour blog that the real genius of Quail Hollow was picked up by Jeff Rude:

The top two Wachovia Championship finishers both made double bogeys coming in. And high finisher Vijay Singh made two bogeys and a triple coming in. It appeared the boys were stinking up the gym.

That speaks of one thing: Quail Hollow is one of the best courses on the Tour. You might say it deserves the strong field and favorable date it received.
It's one thing for a newcomer to the game evaluating a course based on its difficulty, but after all of the great stuff Dr. Klein has penned in Golfweek about what actually merits architectural legitimacy, you'd like to think we could something a tad more nuanced than the course's ability to churn out doubles and triples. Right?

 

"That's just ridiculous, in twosomes"

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An unbylined story on Tiger fuming about slow play at golf's sixth major where it's all right in front of you...

Woods, playing with Vijay Singh in the final pairing, finished the 18th hole in semi-darkness, a few minutes past 8pm local time at Quail Hollow.

The start of play was delayed by two hours due to nearby lightning, so Woods and Singh did not tee off until 3.40pm.

He could not understand why it took more than four hours, 20 minutes to play 18 holes, especially on a course well designed for walking, without many long distances between holes.

"That's just ridiculous, in twosomes," said the world number one, who bogeyed the last two holes to finish a shot behind leader Rory Sabbatini of South Africa.

"I didn't think we were going to finish and Vijay didn't either, but we got it in somehow.

"It's like playing under caution all day. No-one ever gave us a green to go. That was the way it was and we had to deal with it."

"In case you haven't noticed, Mr. Ross isn't building any more courses"

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Thanks to reader Trevor for this Robert Bell story on the debate breaking out over the Greensboro course of the future and the possibility of moving to Donald Ross's Sedgefield. You know, the one that no one famous will play because it's scheduled the week before the playoffs starting.

"That would be cool, that would be really cool," said tour player Rocco Mediate, who slipped away from Forest Oaks during last year's tournament in Greensboro to play a round at Sedgefield.

Mediate said many tour players who annually skip Greensboro's tour stop would reconsider if the tournament moved to Sedgefield's Donald Ross course.

"In case you haven't noticed, Mr. Ross isn't building any more courses," Mediate said. "Getting an old course like Sedgefield as a regular stop would be a brilliant move, and I think players would respond to that."

Five years ago, the Greensboro Jaycees signed a 20-year agreement to play the tournament at Forest Oaks through 2022. But sources at Sedgefield and Forest Oaks say Greensboro businessman Bobby Long, director of the charitable foundation that runs the Wyndham, is negotiating a buyout with the Japanese company that owns Forest Oaks.
And... 
Jerry Kelly said Sedgefield would do for the Wyndham what Quail Hollow Club has done for the Wachovia.

"There's a reason (27) of the world's top 30 golfers are here and it's not the courtesy cars," the tour player said, referring to the Mercedes automobiles.

Does that mean it could become the seventh major?

Many players have not embraced fellow tour player Davis Love III's 2003 redesign of Forest Oaks.

Robert Gamez said Love took out all the curves of Forest Oaks.

"It was always one of the best courses we played, but now you don't have to maneuver the ball at all," Gamez said. "Just hit it straight and hard and don't worry about working the ball. Sedgefield is different. It makes you have to think."

Kelly said Love "tried to make Forest Oaks a little more Pinehurst-ish. I just don't know if the land and routing was there to turn it into what he wanted."

And this from the ever jovial Charles Warren, who I would expect to say something like this:

"Just being a Ross course doesn't make it a good course," Warren said. "It's hard to find a lot of (Pinehurst) No. 2s around the country. I'd like to see it stay" at Forest Oaks. "They always seem to get good crowds, and the atmosphere is always high."