Should the PGA adopt U.S. Open conditions for regular tour events?
Halfway through the U.S. Open -- which is run by the USGA -- I started wondering, Why doesn't the PGA make more of its regular tour events like the U.S. Open, with really penalizing rough and tough pin positions on beguiling greens and where even par or worse usually wins the tournament ? I mean, I really loved watching the drama when the pros were turned into complete hacks just like the rest of us.
By tournament's end, however, I got tired watching all the bad play. Hey, if I want to watch bad play and bogeys and double bogeys, I can watch the buddies in my foursome and myself. It ain't pretty, let me tell you. The U.S. Open wasn't pretty, either. I love watching it, especially when the pros suffer meltdowns like pretty boy Mickelson did. But I would not want to watch more than one or two U.S. Open style tournaments a year. How about you?
4 Comments:
I was so sick of the course setup by the final round I didn't want to watch anymore. I mean I watch the PGA tour to see the greatest golfers do the most amazing things. I don't want to see them hack out of 8" rough or put over giant mounds on the green. If they toned the rough down a bit it still would have been difficult but not impossible like it was on Sunday. I hope they never return to that course again.
I like the idea. Making the courses longer only plays into the hands of the long hitters. The only way to neutralize the equipment is through narrower fairways and graduated rough. I think alot of the secondary tournaments wouldn't dare, though. They are afraid the stars will skip their tournament.
It was weird watching the Open though. They were always cutting to these guys sitting in the middle of the fairway 50 yards out on par 4's. After a while, you realized right away the guy was hitting 3 after hacking out. You just never see guys in that position on the regular tour. Didn't bother me. They shouldn't be allowing these guys to be blasting away off the tee with no regard for any hazards other than water.
One of my friends said the same thing as Joel. The big names might avoid playing in the regular events that were "too difficult."
Maybe not full-on US Open conditions, but some things can still be done to the set-up of each course to make it a bit more challenging, in particular I like the following:
-More rough, although maybe not the 8" nastiness the US Open play to
-Furrowed Sand Traps!!!!
-No raking the traps at night after the tournament begins.
-Even Faster greens
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