My first ever U.S. Open in person was very memorable. Here are some of my thoughts:
When I saw the 18th green for the first time with my own eyes, all I thought was "wow". I've never seen a green with so much undulations and severe rolls like that. I thought "roller coaster".
The rough doesn't look like it's very high, but it is thick. They were cutting it on Tuesday, but the rough should get longer through the course of the week. If the rough is wet from rain, it will be impossible. I saw Camilo Villegas on Monday, perhaps arguably one of the strongest players on tour, barely able to advance the ball 30 yards with a sand wedge on the right of the par-5 12th hole. The new graduated rough is interesting to say the least. Wayward drives will be punished perhaps 65-70 percent of the time. 100 percent if wet.
What an amazing course, and driving accuracy will be at the utmost premium. The greens were soft and the balls were not rolling far on the fairways, but if they do get any faster, it will be scary. There was not one spot of brown grass in any of the fairways (except of course in the designated fairway crossings for spectators). Kudos to the WF staff.
I think 16, 17, and 18 are brutal. What a disturbingly strong and scary finish. I think the winning score will be in the 3-under to even-par range. if conditions become dry and windy, 2-over could win it.
Holes 5,6,7 must be taken advantage of. easy holes, but 7 can be tricky.
Here are some photos I'll share right now with my limited internet connection. I think I took pictures of every inch and every possible angle of this golf course. If you would like me to post more pictures of the course or of some of the players, just let me know.
Tremendous, tremendous clubhouse.
The 1st hole reverse angle. Very difficult green.
Tiger off the 1st tee. Ripped it down the middle, 315 yards.
The par-3 3rd hole. lots of players struggled on this hole during the practice rounds. Perhaps the hardest of the four par-3's at WF?
When's the last time you've seen Tiger use a wood to a par-3? This is to the 3rd hole.
The par-5 5th hole, 515 yards. Players MUST, I repeat, MUST birdie this hole and score well on No. 6 too. The two easiest holes on the golf course. I was very disapointed with hole no. 6. doesn't seem like it belongs at Winged foot and rather at a muni. Nonetheless, interesting to see if players will take a rip at it. I was told no one reached the green with driver, although some reached the greenside bunker.
The 8th hole from the tee. A very difficult tee shot that requires a cut and fighting a slightly uphill crescendo to the green.
The 8th hole reverse angle.
The longest par-4 in u.s. open history, 514 yards. Still, players were using 5 to 6 irons to this hole. Chad Campbell eagled this hole from the fairway on Monday.
Photo of the week? I had to wait pretty long and get through the crowds rather harshly to get into position for this shot. Tiger at the 10th.
My favorite hole, the par-4 14th. interesting driving hole. players didn't have a problem carrying the left fairway bunker.
One of the best looking approach shots at Winged Foot at the 14th hole.
Since Winged Foot was built on "unremarkable land", many (if not all) of the greens are severely pushed up. Here is a perspective behind the 14th green if you miss long. It is a tough recovery.
The 16th is a brutal hole at 478 yards. Must hit it in the fairway to have any chance at the green. This hole will severely test a player's sunday nerves.
The 18th tee box. Very awkward tee shot with trees looming on the left. It requires a slight draw, but Tiger tried to hit it over the left trees with a straight line to the fairway.
I tried my best to capture the severity of the humps on the 18th green. It's pretty ridiculous. Anything short will roll back into the fairway.
18th green reverse angle. Anything that lands on the back of the green will roll back to the middle. This green is semi-biarritz in some respects with a subtle depression in the middle of the green. Hard to do the 18th green justice with this picture, but I tried my best. You have to see it with your own eyes to believe it.
Let me know what you think. Also, please keep in mind I am an amateur photographer, I am not a pro. I was using two cameras. The Canon D70 6.0 megapixels digital SLR with a relatively mediocre zoom lens and also a Canon G3 4.0 megapixel digital camera.