US Open Course Preview

BSmack · Post by **BSmack** » Wed Jun 06, 2007 5:04 pm

The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review has a nice interactive course tour of Oakmont. You can see all the holes Earl's kid will be playing on his way to his 3rd US Open Championship.

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/images/vi ... sOpen.html

indyfrisco · Post by **indyfrisco** » Wed Jun 06, 2007 5:10 pm

Pretty sweet. thanks for the link.

Old bad joke:

You know how Tiger got his nickname?

Dinsdale · Post by **Dinsdale** » Wed Jun 06, 2007 5:49 pm

IndyFrisco wrote: Old bad joke:

You know how Tiger got his nickname?

Don't make me split this topic.

Goober McTuber · Post by **Goober McTuber** » Wed Jun 06, 2007 6:04 pm

I like number 8. 288 yard par 3. I believe that’s two 6-irons and wedge, right Ken? Some of the pros won’t reach that with a driver.

Goober McTuber · Post by **Goober McTuber** » Wed Jun 06, 2007 6:08 pm

Dinsdale wrote:
IndyFrisco wrote: Old bad joke:

You know how Tiger got his nickname?

Don't make me split this topic.

So a cordless sawzall is good for something after all.

indyfrisco · Post by **indyfrisco** » Wed Jun 06, 2007 6:17 pm

Dinsdale wrote:
IndyFrisco wrote: Old bad joke:

You know how Tiger got his nickname?

Don't make me split this topic.

I could mend it with some square head deck screws.

Goober McTuber · Post by **Goober McTuber** » Wed Jun 06, 2007 6:23 pm

Then we could dress it up with some nice Behr stain.

Dinsdale · Post by **Dinsdale** » Wed Jun 06, 2007 6:27 pm

Goober McTuber wrote:I like number 8. 288 yard par 3.

Brutal par 3.

While Cory Pavin has no chance, that's a little short to pull driver(and good luck stopping it)for the big hitters, and a little much for a 3W.

Are they going to open up a driver face, or what? Opening up an 8* driver probably won't do much.

Tough play, that one.

DallasFanatic · Post by **DallasFanatic** » Wed Jun 06, 2007 7:41 pm

288 yards is not too much for a 3 wood. Professionals hit their 3 woods probably 275-300 yards. I think you will see some of the big hitters hit 2-iron into this hole and the average hitters to be hitting 3 woods high, landing it just short and running it onto the green. You are correct when you say Pavin has no chance.

Dinsdale · Post by **Dinsdale** » Wed Jun 06, 2007 7:56 pm

DallasFanatic wrote:Professionals hit their 3 woods probably 275-300 yards.

Of course they do...on the surface of the moon.

Here on Earth...not so much.

You do realize that at present, there's only 7 players on the Tour that average 300 with their driver, right...and all but 1 don't break 300 by much.

I remember Tiger jacking a second shot with a 3W about 280, and afterwards called it "the longest 3 wood of my life."

So, in conclusion...uhm, no. Someone has been playing a little too much XBox.

MuchoBulls · Post by **MuchoBulls** » Wed Jun 06, 2007 8:43 pm

Ogilvy was on Jim Rome's show today and he played Oakmont on Monday. He said that he wouldn't be surprised if a higher score than his winning +5 would win this tournament. He said that he blasted a 3W on #8 and it barely got there.

This is going to be fun to watch.

Dinsdale · Post by **Dinsdale** » Wed Jun 06, 2007 9:07 pm

MuchoBulls wrote:He said that he blasted a 3W on #8 and it barely got there.

Which I assume means to the front, and not pin-high, making it less than a 288 shot(which will obviously depend on pin placement).

And Ogilvy is a pretty damn big hitter.

BSmack · Post by **BSmack** » Wed Jun 06, 2007 9:10 pm

Dinsdale wrote:So, in conclusion...uhm, no. Someone has been playing a little too much XBox.

In that case, so has the club pro at Oakmont. His comments on the 8th hole out front should have told you that.

Dinsdale · Post by **Dinsdale** » Wed Jun 06, 2007 9:58 pm

BSmack wrote:His comments on the 8th hole out front should have told you that.

Sorry if I'm actually more inclined to listen to say...someone who has actually won an Open, and one of the longer hitters on the tour, who says he barely got there with a 3W.

That would be one hell of a 2I, and would need the run-up to get anywhere close, more than likely.

Ken · Post by **Ken** » Thu Jun 07, 2007 1:07 am

Dinsdale wrote:and a little much for a 3W.

Are they going to open up a driver face, or what? Opening up an 8* driver probably won't do much.

Tough play, that one.

Yeah, THAT'S what they'll do... open up a driver face. Not only is that a great suggestion in and of itself, it lends itself to even MORE creedence when the layout suggests that a low or gentle draw is the play, not a fade (pending pin position of course).

Pull the driver, open the face, let 'er rip.
Good one.

It may be one hell of a long par 3, but I guarantee you, there will be clubs other than 3W's pulled here... and as much as I want to embrace your spectacular suggestion that some pros open the driver face and rip one out there, the clubs other than 3W's will be of the 15-20* ilk.

Ken · Post by **Ken** » Thu Jun 07, 2007 1:12 am

Dinsdale wrote:... and one of the longer hitters on the tour...

Say what?

Dinsdale · Post by **Dinsdale** » Thu Jun 07, 2007 1:22 am

Ken wrote:
Dinsdale wrote:... and one of the longer hitters on the tour...
Say what?

My bad...I totally had Ogilvy confused with someone else, although he hits the irons pretty hard, from what I remember.

A quick check of the stats shows he's in the top third in driving distance this year. Yet, he's barely getting there with a 3W. So much for that 2I deal, eh?

Ken · Post by **Ken** » Thu Jun 07, 2007 1:45 am

Dinsdale wrote:
Ken wrote:
Dinsdale wrote:... and one of the longer hitters on the tour...
Say what?
My bad...I totally had Ogilvy confused with someone else

Yeah, that other O-man on tour... Joe. Easy to confuse I'm sure. It's just that, well... Joe's driving distance rank is easily into the 100's. Way to go.

although he hits the irons pretty hard, from what I remember.

Oh yes, of course. From what you remember. Remembering sure worked out for ya' when you confused one of the top 20 players in the world, possibly top 10 be year's end, the most recent U.S. Open winner with some schmoe.

RumpleForeskin · Post by **RumpleForeskin** » Thu Jun 07, 2007 2:17 am

17 looks like it could be a leaderboard changing hole. 313 DL with bunkers surrounding the green. It will be fun to see if any of the big dogs get aggressive with this hole on Sunday.

Felix · Post by **Felix** » Thu Jun 07, 2007 3:23 am

RumpleForeskin wrote:313 DL with bunkers surrounding the green

coupled with the 6 inch rough that encompasses all of thosegreenside bunkers, should make for a very interesting hole.....

a disaster waiting to happen......

Qbert · Post by **Qbert** » Thu Jun 07, 2007 4:52 am

MuchoBulls wrote:Ogilvy was on Jim Rome's show today and he played Oakmont on Monday. He said that he wouldn't be surprised if a higher score than his winning +5 would win this tournament. He said that he blasted a 3W on #8 and it barely got there.

This is going to be fun to watch.

Ogilvy also said that Adam Scott shot +1(71)...and played GREAT.

....and for Anyone to play that GREAT for 4 DAYS Straight...??????????

this Open is going to be a bloodbath.

RumpleForeskin · Post by **RumpleForeskin** » Thu Jun 07, 2007 12:14 pm

Qbert wrote:this Open is going to be a bloodbath.

Yeah, the Open is my favorite tourney of the year because of the stranglehold it puts on the greatest players in the world; however, when does it get to be too much? We're bordering on rediculous if +8 wins it this year. Players have been complaining for the last couple of years about the stupid track conditions the USGA throws at them for the Open. When is enough is enough?

indyfrisco · Post by **indyfrisco** » Thu Jun 07, 2007 2:11 pm

RumpleForeskin wrote:When is enough is enough?

Never.

They all have to play the same course. That's the beauty of it. The more they complain, the tougher it should be made. I don't give a fuck if they finish -6 or +6. Hell, I love to see these guys struggle. It makes the true golf enthusiast feel good that even the best in the world are human. Humility is a virtue....one I express with every evil coon.

RumpleForeskin · Post by **RumpleForeskin** » Thu Jun 07, 2007 2:31 pm

IndyFrisco wrote:It makes the true golf enthusiast feel good that even the best in the world are human.

True. I guess its never bad to see the best of the best occasionally look like the average foursome at the local public course.

Dinsdale · Post by **Dinsdale** » Thu Jun 07, 2007 3:32 pm

IndyFrisco wrote:
RumpleForeskin wrote:When is enough is enough?
Never.

No shit.

Most of the courses I play don't have immaculate rough in the far corners, which I find on an occasion. Sometimes that crap is a foot long. If I'm lucky enough to find my ball, I play it from there.

And as I'm ripping my arms out of their sockets hacking it out, I think to myself "if you would have hit the fairway, this wouldn't be a problem, now would it, asshat?"

It's my deepest hope that every single player on the Tour is more capable of hitting the short stuff than I am...every last one of them. That's why they get paid 6-7 figures to play, and I've got to call in advance and pony up $30.

And when I put it in the shag, I don't freaking blame the guy who designed the course, I don't blame the greenskeeper, and I don't blame the guy in the clubhouse. Putting blame on others for errant shots is just freaking childish.

I do what any mature, well-grounded adult does -- I blame my driver.

BSmack · Post by **BSmack** » Thu Jun 07, 2007 3:39 pm

Dinsdale wrote:Most of the courses I play don't have immaculate rough in the far corners, which I find on an occasion. Sometimes that crap is a foot long. If I'm lucky enough to find my ball, I play it from there.

Which goes to another difference between the pro game and the game you and I play. Namely, that when you and I launch a ball 50 yards off the fairway, we don't have a built in search party in the form of course marshals and gallery members. I love to see tour players have to really WORK to find their errant tee shots.

RumpleForeskin · Post by **RumpleForeskin** » Thu Jun 07, 2007 5:50 pm

BSmack wrote: we don't have a built in search party in the form of course marshals and gallery members.

You know its just a matter of time before someone starts inserting GPS into golfballs so you don't have to buy as many.

BSmack · Post by **BSmack** » Thu Jun 07, 2007 6:18 pm

RumpleForeskin wrote:
BSmack wrote: we don't have a built in search party in the form of course marshals and gallery members.
You know its just a matter of time before someone starts inserting GPS into golfballs so you don't have to buy as many.

Not bloodly likely if the big golf ball makers have anything to do with it. Where's the profit in driving down sales?

indyfrisco · Post by **indyfrisco** » Thu Jun 07, 2007 6:37 pm

BSmack wrote:
RumpleForeskin wrote:
BSmack wrote: we don't have a built in search party in the form of course marshals and gallery members.
You know its just a matter of time before someone starts inserting GPS into golfballs so you don't have to buy as many.
Not bloodly likely if the big golf ball makers have anything to do with it. Where's the profit in driving down sales?

Then again, charging $50 for a ball with GPS will boost sales. We still have water on the course and damned if I'm going swimming to find a ball. Then again, if I was dumbass enough to pay $50 for a ball, I probably would be dumb enough to jump in after it.

DallasFanatic · Post by **DallasFanatic** » Thu Jun 07, 2007 10:23 pm

Dinsdale wrote:
DallasFanatic wrote:Professionals hit their 3 woods probably 275-300 yards.

Of course they do...on the surface of the moon.

Here on Earth...not so much.

You do realize that at present, there's only 7 players on the Tour that average 300 with their driver, right...and all but 1 don't break 300 by much.

I remember Tiger jacking a second shot with a 3W about 280, and afterwards called it "the longest 3 wood of my life."

So, in conclusion...uhm, no. Someone has been playing a little too much XBox.

Cmon Dins, you of all knowledgeable people, know how driving distance stats are calculated. Don't go by some numbers you looked up on pgatour.com. Go by watching these guys hit the freakin ball thursday thru sunday and then get back to me. If indeed tiger made that statement you quoted above, it must have been a 280 yard super super uphill and into the wind. Thats not what you are going to find at #8 next week.

indyfrisco · Post by **indyfrisco** » Fri Jun 08, 2007 1:47 pm

I gotta agree with DF on this one. I poke a 3 wood about 280 when I get it on the screws. I probably averyage around 260 with a 3 wood. MOST pros, sans Pavin and a few others, can nail a 3 wood, some even a 14* hybrid, 280 with regularity.

Dinsdale · Post by **Dinsdale** » Fri Jun 08, 2007 3:53 pm

IndyFrisco wrote:I probably would be dumb enough to jump in after it.

This one time, I got reeeeealllly drunk while playing a roung in winter, and...

Nevermind.

RumpleForeskin · Post by **RumpleForeskin** » Fri Jun 08, 2007 4:14 pm

Dinsdale wrote:This one time, I got reeeeealllly drunk

Sidebar Note:

I'm a serious golfer when I play and I usually play for money (Wolf, Skins, Greenies and sometimes the occasional Nassau (sp?) with a player in the group). Sometimes the nerves will be there early and I tend to shake a little when putting and I usually will throw in a pinch of snuff to calm me down.

Absolutely no drinking when I am out there, except for one time which is kinda an epic story which I will save for a later date. Lets just say it involved a stripper, a 9-iron, and a cup of ice. I leave you to create your own details in your domes.

Ken · Post by **Ken** » Fri Jun 08, 2007 5:12 pm

IndyFrisco wrote:
RumpleForeskin wrote:When is enough is enough?
Never.

Bull shit.
This year aside (something about my local course kickin' ass), the last thing I want is to watch the pros struggling all over the course. The next time I want to watch golfers hack around, muscle shots outta the deep, deep rough 100 yds forward, part the Red Sea and actually hold an approach on the green, and breathe a sigh of relief when they get outta there with a par or even bogey, then I'll head on over to my local muni and drop a lawn chair along the 15th with a cooler at my side. Actually, doesn't sound like a bad idea, but that aside...

Unwar to any of you that enjoy watching the pros struggle around a courses for the sole reason that you can say to yourself, Hell, that looked like me last week, bwhaa." Li'l note: compared to them, you suck. Big time. If you didn't know that already and needed concrete evidence to nail your point, then you're a grade A, prime shithead.

I already recognize the fact that I'll NEVER reach the pros' level. So, when I tune in, I want to watch some magic worked. Hey, I'm not asking for a 20 under score to take the tourney nor am I asking for a tourney devoid of challenge. However, I am asking that I watch a tourney where I can see the pros perform to their potential, not be torn down to something approaching our level. At Oakmont, you most likely won't see Tiger in the rough, maple tree 100 yds ahead, pin another 130 ahead of that and him pull a miraculous low draw of high fade onto the green around the tree. There will be no working the ball outta this rough... and to a degree, that's a shame. That's what I wanna see.

Dinsdale · Post by **Dinsdale** » Fri Jun 08, 2007 5:41 pm

Ken wrote:At Oakmont, you most likely won't see Tiger in the rough, maple tree 100 yds ahead, pin another 130 ahead of that and him pull a miraculous low draw of high fade onto the green around the tree. There will be no working the ball outta this rough... and to a degree, that's a shame. That's what I wanna see.

So, the US Open will give the advantage to...the best ballstriker, who keeps it in the mower-lanes?

What a travesty.

It's a shame it might favor someone like Goose, who can tailor his game to many conditions, and can finesse a bump-and-run, as well as bring it in "high-and-hot"? Someone who knows when to layup and take their par/bogey like a man.

A course that's going to take bomb-and-gougers like Bubba, JB, and Barry Bonds-Villegas, who only ever practice 3 different shots(bombed drive, gouged sandwedge, and putts) out of contention?

RACK the USGA for promoting something other than the same old week-in-week-out "lowest score possible" tournies. Hell, my munis don't cater to my desire to see ultra-low scores every time out, so I don't see where the USGA should, either.

Intelligent, creative golf is a good thing.

Dinsdale · Post by **Dinsdale** » Fri Jun 08, 2007 5:43 pm

Of course, if Ken had his way, they be teeing it up from the whites...

the way the course was MEANT to be played.

BSmack · Post by **BSmack** » Fri Jun 08, 2007 5:52 pm

RumpleForeskin wrote:Absolutely no drinking when I am out there, except for one time which is kinda an epic story which I will save for a later date. Lets just say it involved a stripper, a 9-iron, and a cup of ice. I leave you to create your own details in your domes.

I think we all get the visual.

Ken · Post by **Ken** » Sun Jun 10, 2007 12:02 pm

Dinsdale wrote:
BSmack wrote:His comments on the 8th hole out front should have told you that.

Sorry if I'm actually more inclined to listen to say...someone who has actually won an Open, and one of the longer hitters on the tour, who says he barely got there with a 3W.

That would be one hell of a 2I, and would need the run-up to get anywhere close, more than likely.

Ya' know, there were at least two other people quite inclined to listen to what Mr. Ford had to say when they each requested a practice round w/him last week. No big deal or anything... just the #1 and #2 ranked players in the world.
No biggie, I guess. Move along.

Dinsdale · Post by **Dinsdale** » Sun Jun 10, 2007 4:32 pm

Did they ask him to caddie?

Yeah, didn't think so.

I'm thinking club selection is best left to the tour pro and his caddie, and not a guy who would love to have either one of their jobs, except isn't qualified.

Ken · Post by **Ken** » Sun Jun 10, 2007 4:55 pm

Yes, club selection at a given point has NOTHING to do with past experience and/or advice from people other than a caddie.
Stop now. Really, stop.

Pittsburgh Post Gazette wrote:Even Tiger Woods knows him ... and likes him.

When he visited Oakmont for the first time in April, Woods had dinner with Ford, picked his brain about the history of the club and the course, and even asked his advice when they played a practice round the next day.

When they got to No. 15, a 499-yard par-4, Woods turned to Ford on the tee and said, "What do you like, Bob?"

Ford said, "I like that 3-wood you hit on No. 8."

Woods pulled 3-wood and split the fairway with a slight draw, then hit 8-iron to the green. Make no mistake, he will hit 3-wood during the U.S. Open, just like Ford told him.