The Mood For Merion, 6th Hole Flyover

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The 6th hole aerial flattens out some of the nice ground features on a hole that'll play 487 yards for the 2013 U.S. Open. With the reduced widths, the tee shot is a forced carry over rough and maybe not even a driver.

Looking back on an old magazine feature covering Bobby Jones' medal rounds here in the 1930 U.S. Amateur, the great Jones hit 2-iron in when the hole played at 442 yards.

Cal Kicks Off NCAA Finals Play...

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Janie McCauley doesn't break any new ground on the amazing story that is Cal golf but she does review all of the essential elements that make them an underdog program heading into the NCAA finals Tuesday in Georgia.

Cal has won 11 of 13 in 2012-13. And as Ryan Lavner notes, they head into the finals with a season record of 173-3-1 and up over 6000 shots on fields this year.

The top-ranked California men's golf team has no home course to call its own, typically shuttling among seven or eight local spots. Most of the Golden Bears were passed on by the elite college golf programs.

Still, Cal is favored to win the NCAA championships beginning Tuesday in Georgia — quite an accomplishment for the record-setting program that operates without any financial help from the university. The golf team has an annual budget of about $600,000.

Golfweek has all of the coverage, including this Twitter feed of players and coaches. And Lance Ringler reminds us that with the match play format, the dynamics of the NCAA are different than what teams see most of the year.

You can follow scores here.

Video: The Mood For Merion, 5th Hole Flyover

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I giggled watching this U.S. Open flyover as it does not do justice to one of the greatest greens in golf. But the ground before the putting surface is pretty sensational too, making this one of the very best par-4s on the planet and likely a spot I'll try to set up shop during U.S. Open week.

To try and describe the green would be unfair other than to say it's a masterpiece of lay-of-the-land architecture with numerous "pockets" for hole locations. Anywhere on this green in two means you've hit two outstanding shots and a par-4 will have come after two fine putts.

Video: The Mood For Merion, 4th Hole Flyover

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Lengthened to 628 yards, Merion's 4th should be a true three-shotter unless Merion dries out in the days leading up to the 2013 U.S. Open. The fairway contour is much better looking here and fits this amazing hole pretty nicely considering the template of going so narrow to offset the improved diets of today's players.

The green and its distinctive pit bunkering has gone unchanged decades. This is also the last par-3 the players will see at par-70 Merion.

Jeff Overton To Rules Staff: Please Coddle Me A Little More!

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From Stephen Hawkins' AP story on Jeff Overton, who was DQ'd for using a putting alignment aid mid-round after an official told him he could putt while a 10th tee backup worked its way out.

Soon after coming off the course, Overton tweeted "3 group back up at the turn. Rules official tells me we can practice chipping and putting. Disqualified for using my practice putting aid!"

Overton immediately followed that with another tweet, "Why do rules officials initiate that conversation to begin with. I wouldn't even have gone up there if I had know that. What a joke!"

Going to a designated practice area is permissible during a round, but use of artificial or instructional devices isn't. The penalty is disqualification.

"If ur gonna inform someone on a rule of something a person can do, make sure u remind them of the small things they can't do," Overton added on (at)JeffOvertonPGA.

How could that darned official not know that Overton uses a putting aid? Why, it's what all the kids do these days!

Or, Jeff could go to Rules School? Or, use your brain to wonder if you should ask before pulling out the aid? Or, I don't know, maybe have a caddy who would wonder if that's a good idea? It's got to be anybody by the players' fault!

The Overton Tweets for posterity: 

Golf Central's report starts at the 13 minute mark.

Randall Mells's explanation of the decision and rule 14-3/10.3.

And a flashback story on Juli Inkster's DQ for the same reason, only hers was at the hand of a TV viewer.

Video: The Mood For Merion, 3rd Hole Flyover

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After a pretty easy pair to start, Merion kicks into high gear with the difficult 256-yard par-3 third that will alternate as a 219-yarder. There's zero room for error but it's a beatiful hole that sits in the landscape quite nicely.

This should also be the first real bottleneck considering the third's difficulty and the reachable nature of the second hole.