pga week: whistling straits
Majestic, awe-inspiring, breath-taking. Need I say more? That's all you need to know about Whistling Straits, the site of the PGA Championship this week. This is the first Pete Dye -designed course used in a major, and I absolutely love the layout. Take a peek, it might be the best ever.
5 Comments:
Played the course about a month and a half ago. Didn't play from the tees the pros will play from (weren't out), but I played from the furthest tees available. The 6 hour round drove me nuts...resort goofballs yapping on cellphones and lollygagging around the course. The caddy was fantastic, though. Nice bonus after dealing with several worthless caddies at Bandon/Pacific Dunes for two days.
Anyway...the course was in great shape, but an absolute beast. I'm a 4-5 handicap, played fairly well, and shot 80 and was delighted. The wind made a few holes bogey holes at best. And off the tee, there are waste areas that appear to be traps, and you aren't sure where the real trouble is, and where the really bad trouble is. The waste areas are unplayable (little knob holes suck in your ball so that you can only punch through several inches of dirt to advance the ball 15 yards). Kepp it in the fairway, you are golden, but the fairways are so hard, you better be able to shape the ball so it will stay in the fairway. The greens are fantastic; they will be the one factor that the players won't complain about (for difficulty)...but getting it to the green could prove to be a nightmare. If Els isn't too tired from the International, he will probably fight it out with several Euros for the winner's check.
Looks like it might place a close second to Shinnecock.
Might be the hardest PGA Championship to date. The problem lies, as stated above, the fact that drives keep rolling in the fairway, and once you hit rough, it is rough like you have never seen. The Europeans will apppreciate it, while the target golf Americans will complain. Darren Clarke, in an interview yesterday, rated it highly, saying it was extremely tough, but fair. I'd say with an attitude like that, he will be one to follow.
So far, I think Whistling Straits beats Shinnecock (and I was a huge fan of Shinnecock until the USGA tricked it up). I'll reserve final judgment until I see the telecast.
I have played several Dye courses. He is a sadist, plain and simple.
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