My first piece from the Open is up at Cybergolf. It’s a hole-by-hole breakdown of Pebble Beach.
From the article:
“Even though it’s the shortest U.S. Open we play, it’s still getting awfully quick out there,” cautioned Woods, who was civil and obliging with golf questions on Tuesday but surly, rude and more obnoxious than a vuvuzela horn with anyone who asked about his recovery from the scandal. “If they don’t put any water on these things come Sunday, it’s going to be very interesting,” he suggested
Additionally, V-grooves will also place a premium once again on shot-making, not the vilified “bomb-and-gouge” golf that blights the PGA Tour landscape at many tour stops. Players will have to shape shots from off-kilter lies to tiny greens encircled by the worst rough on the course, five inches deep in places.
So instead of the long, relentless grind of an Oakmont, Oakland Hills or Winged Foot, the mercurial routing of Pebble Beach’s short and long holes will provide fireworks, with many more birdies and bogeys than we are accustomed to at American golf’s annual national championship.
“I buy into the philosophy of making the hard holes harder and the easy holes easier,” explained reigning Masters champion Phil Mickelson. “I want to see birdies and I want to see bogeys and be challenged on the hard holes and have an opportunity to get a shot back on the easy ones.”
For tomorrow: interviews with Tom Watson and Jack Fleck. Also look for an analysis of the course set-up as told by former major champions.
