Phil on Wednesdays

[Steve_Roths]

In the past Phil has snuck off to practice in peace on the Wednesday of a major:

Chicago Golf Club
Friars Head Golf Club

Anyone know where he went today?

[Steve_ Shaffer]

Split Rock? Saxon Woods? Van Cortlandt Park?

[Phil Benedict]

He probably planned to go to Cherry Lawn Driving Range, but unfortunately it's closed.  I wonder what they did with their golf ball inventory.  Some of them were real antiques.

[Jordan Wall]

Last year he went to Pine Valley Wed. of the PGA.

[Glenn Spencer]

Quaker would make the most sense, but this Cherry Lawn Park sounds pretty good too.

[Phil Benedict]

Quaker would make the most sense, but this Cherry Lawn Park sounds pretty good too.

I don't think Quaker has a range but in the past you could stop at Cherry Lawn to hit a bucket of balls before playing there.  The owners have finally cashed in on the real estate value.  This is a trend in suburban areas as far as driving ranges are concerned.  Of the three ranges within a 10-mile radius of where I live, two have been sold in the last 6 months to develop the real estate.  The only one that's left is in a commercial area so it will survive.  I think it was previously owned by the Jack Nicklaus company that went belly-up.

Cherry Lawn had the worst golf balls and a single flag to use as a target, but it did a good business because of its location, just off the Hutch.

[Glenn Spencer]

I thought that he usually played the course or went to a hole and practiced, if it was just about the range, I am sure that he would stay at Winged Foot. No?

[Jordan Wall]

Seriously my guess would that he plays Shinnecock.

That simply provides the best test and if he played NGLA, or FH, even Maidstone or Fishers, I do not think he would get as much challenege.

[Jonathan McCord]

I'm sure the California guys would know better then myself, but I recall hearing something on TV about Phil heading to Cypress Point while he was playing in the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am.

Must be tough for him to go play all these classic tracks!!!

[Steve_ Shaffer]

And the correct answer is...





BALTUSROL

[Tim Taylor]

Phil, I posted about this trend a few weeks ago. A similar fate is happening to the ranges here in Northern Virginia/suburban Maryland.

It would be interesting to find out if Mickelson played elsewhere today. I hear that there are some halfway decent goat tracks up there in Westchester County

TimT

Quaker would make the most sense, but this Cherry Lawn Park sounds pretty good too.

I don't think Quaker has a range but in the past you could stop at Cherry Lawn to hit a bucket of balls before playing there.  The owners have finally cashed in on the real estate value.  This is a trend in suburban areas as far as driving ranges are concerned.  Of the three ranges within a 10-mile radius of where I live, two have been sold in the last 6 months to develop the real estate.  The only one that's left is in a commercial area so it will survive.  I think it was previously owned by the Jack Nicklaus company that went belly-up.

Cherry Lawn had the worst golf balls and a single flag to use as a target, but it did a good business because of its location, just off the Hutch.

[Bill Shotzbarger]

Baltusrol? Not only does it have sentimental value but it's another true championship course that Tillie designed. And knowing that he can win there must pump him up a lot.

[David Neveux]

No Sebonack?

[Kenny Lee Puckett]

Split Rock? Saxon Woods? Van Cortlandt Park?

It had to have been Dyker Beach...

[Jim Nugent]

Slight (?) changing of topic: does anyone know if Phil has designed any courses, either in fact or in name?

[Steve_ Shaffer]

Jim

PM is the co-designer with Gary Stephenson of the original course at Whisper Rock in Scottsdale, AZ. He is also doing a new course now in the planning stages somewhere in the Palm Springs, CA area.

[Garland Bayley]

Why wouldn't he just go off far from the crowd on WFE?
Same architect, same environs, same conditions.

[rjsimper]

Why wouldn't he just go off far from the crowd on WFE?
Same architect, same environs, same conditions.

Where can he possibly go to truly get away from the crowd at WFE on the Wed before the Open?  Even getting to or from his car would likely be an adventure, and isn't the East course being used as infrastructure anyhow?  I may be wrong but I thought it was

Probably wanted to capture a little of the Baltusrol mojo and jar it for the weekend, anyhow.

[Steve Lapper]

Why wouldn't he just go off far from the crowd on WFE?
Same architect, same environs, same conditions.

WFE is a sea of tents, support bases, and range area. For those who've not seen the whole WF complex, nearly a third of the course is actually east of the entry road, the balance of the holes are next to, or intertwined among the West's holes.