Loopers Lashing Out: "The R&A are sipping their gin and tonics in the clubhouse and we’re having to pay full price to get our wives in."

Charles Sale talks to caddies who are in a rage over having to use Strokesaver yardage guides and the R&A's ticket policy.

Mick Donaghy, caddie for Jamie Donaldson who was two under par after the first round, said: ‘The way we’re treated here is nothing short of a disgrace. The R&A are sipping their gin and tonics in the clubhouse and we’re having to pay full price to get our wives in. The other golf organisations give us proper respect, but that’s never been the case at The Open.’

Dave Clark, who carries Vijay Singh’s clubs, said: ‘There’s still a stigma around caddies. We’re regarded as the lowest of the low. Surely we shouldn’t have to rely on the players to help us out with passes all the time.’

R&A chief executive Peter Dawson countered: ‘Our pass policy is generous and caddies have a fantastic time here.’

Always smoothing things over, Peter is!

Photo: Royal Lytham Can't Handle Much More Water

An cncredited PA photo from the Daily Mail (witih others on their live blog) after Thursday night rains forced the closure of the clubhouse entry gate and left Royal Lytham further drenched.

First Round Leaders, Lytham And Other Stats

Lytham has not been kind to early speed horses, according to Golf World's Brett Avery.

2. Only five first-round Open leaders have won since 1975: Tom Watson (1980 at Muirfield), Seve Ballesteros (1988 at Lytham), Greg Norman (1993 at Royal St. George's), John Daly (1995 at St. Andrews) and Tiger Woods (2005 at St. Andrews). In the first 11 Opens at Lytham, only three first-round leaders have proven victorious: Peter Thomson in '58, Gary Player in '74 and Ballesteros in '88. Perhaps even more dispiriting for Scott, only two first-round leaders have won on the PGA Tour this season (George McNeill at the Puerto Rico Open, Zach Johnson at the Crown Plaza Invitational at Colonial).

Defender Darren: "I was thinking how the bleep did I manage to win this last year."

Mick Cleary on defending champ Darren Clarke's 76.

“Yeah, coming up the last, I was thinking how the bleep did I manage to win this last year,” said Clarke, his wry reflections masking the contempt within. “I don’t think you could really publish my thoughts right now. I’m basically disgusted with myself.”

Tiger On His 67, Video Of His Super Slow-Mo Divot Shot

From ESPN, the post round Tom Rinaldi interview including a Tiger sneeze and a replay of his wild finish from a divot that could have caused injury.

2012 Open Championship Round 1 Open Comment Thread

They're off and running at Royal Lytham after overnight winds and rain have left the course vulnerable to a good score, particularly if the wind holds off.

Here are you links to online viewing options.

And the R&A's setup notes:

The 2012 Open – Round One Course Set Up Notes
Weather (provided on-site by the Met Office)
By 0900 or soon after it should be mostly dry and the cloud should break in the afternoon to give some sunny spells, although with a very small chance of a shower. The wind will swing to the north or northeast and decreasing 5 to 10mph before turning back to the northwest soon after midday and becoming 5 to 10mph gusting 15mph. There is an increased risk of a few showers overnight that could give 1 to 3mm.
 
Cutting Regime and Green Speeds - Greens double cut today at 3.25. Running at approximately 10 ½ feet.
Total Course Yardage for Round Four (tee marker settings to flagstick)
6973 yards (as compared to the full yardage of 7086)
 
Hole 1 – Full yardage = 205y – Today = 204
Hole 2 – Full yardage = 481y – Today = 470
Hole 3 – Full yardage = 478y – Today = 465
Hole 4 – Full yardage = 392y – Today = 395
Hole 5 – Full yardage = 219y – Today = 215
Hole 6 – Full yardage = 492y – Today = 495
Hole 7 – Full yardage = 592y – Today = 582
Hole 8 – Full yardage = 416y – Today = 403
Hole 9 – Full yardage = 165y – Today = 167
Hole 10 – Full yardage = 387y – Today = 378
Hole 11 – Full yardage = 598y – Today = 583
Hole 12 – Full yardage = 198y – Today = 187
Hole 13 – Full yardage = 355y – Today = 351
Hole 14 – Full yardage = 444y – Today = 443
Hole 15 – Full yardage = 462y – Today = 456
Hole 16 – Full yardage = 336y – Today = 322
Hole 17 – Full yardage = 453y – Today = 453
Hole 18 – Full yardage = 413y – Today = 404
 
Additional Comment - Despite very best efforts by the greenstaff, there is still small puddles of water in the following bunkers:
·         Two bunkers RHS of 2nd green
·         Short right of 4th green
·         Two bunkers RHS of 16th green
·         Fairway bunkers LHS of 17th fairway

Monty On Not Playing Lytham: "It is all the more frustrating for me not to be involved this year, as straightness has always been a strength of mine."

The ubiquitous Colin Montgomerie has been signing books, giving interviews galore and in general, is making his presence felt this week at Royal Lytham and St. Annes, almost as if he was a former champion here (or anywhere).

But the former Open runner up is saving his most ridiculous insights for Daily Telegraph columns that should give the makers of Ambien cause for concern. Two stinkers from today's preview piece:

Of course, the rough in Kent was not as tough as the stuff we have here at Lytham. But then, the Lytham rough is not as fearsome as some people have suggested. Of course, there will be a penalty for anyone who goes into it, but it is one of the fundamentals of golf that bad shots should be punished and good shots, which at Lytham means straight shots, should be rewarded. Here, I like the fact that the worst of the rough, the really deep stuff, is far off line, meaning there is an element of proportionality to the punishment as well.

Of course, that's gibberish. The setup goes like this: Fairway, intermediate cut, rough of varying heights/density, slightly mashed roughs of varying heights/density, then rough mashed a bit where the media walks and finally, mashed down rough where the fans walk. Not proportional.

Lytham is maybe a little bit different from other Open courses as the houses that surround it offer some protection from the wind.

Some, being the operative word here. Wind protection from one-story homes?

Flashback: Contrasting R&A And PGA Tour Slow Play Stances

The R&A's Jim McArthur yesterday. Well worth reading again:

I have to say to you, we are intent on doing what we can to improve the pace of play in golf.  I mean, I think we feel that particularly maybe not so much at professional golf but certainly amateur golf that slow play is, in some ways, if not killing the game, is killing the club membership because of the time it takes to play.  And whatever we can do in our events, and bear in mind that we are not seeing the players week in, week out.  We see them two or three times a year, professionals once a year, amateurs two or three times a year, we're doing whatever we feel we can in the circumstances to contribute to improving the pace of play.

But it needs to be a concerted effort, not just the R&A, not just the Tours, but the golf unions and other golf organisations to, I think, come to a coordinated effort to improve the speed.

And I think we should ‑‑ personally I think we should be aiming in club amateur golf for three and a half hours maximum for a threeball, perhaps elite amateur four hours.  These should be maximum times, and we should be trying to improve these at all times.

Tim Finchem in May at The Players, talking about how the PGA Tour is a different beast than the everyday game: 

Anything we can do from‑‑ we reach all of the fans.  Anything we can do from a communications standpoint to encourage people playing faster, we will do.  But clubs have got to take the initiative to drive play, and the average player has got to take the initiative and say, guys, let's go out here and play in three hours and 45 minutes, and that doesn't happen too many places.

So if I'm watching‑‑ I'm giving you a long answer, but I've been talking about this for a long time.  If I'm watching a PGA TOUR player, and I'm going to go through the same pre‑shot routine that that player takes, and he's hitting it 69 times and I'm hitting it 93, I'm going to be playing a lot longer than that guy.  So it's a different game from that perspective.

At least one of the Five Families talks a good game.