Simon,
There is no rough left of Strath (i.e. between Strath and Hill bunkers). Played there on Saturday and came face to face with that pit. There is often some mottled rough around the fringes of Hill bunker however.
The 8th hole is often misunderstood. It can be quite devilish depending on the wind, green firmness and pin position. In the last 4 Open Championships (1990, '95, '00, '05) is has played the 9th, 5th, 8th and 8th hardest hole. I do like the idea of being able to run the ball into the green, but the gap between the bunker at the front left of the green (referred to as the 'short hole bunker' by A.Mackenzie), and the drop off to the right is quite narrow – only perhaps 8 yards wide – and is the main path used by golfers to get to the green. But when the hole is playing downwind and the flag is at the front, the idea of running the ball in is tempting. If, in the last 5 yards before the green, this approach didn't slope down to the green so much, I am sure I would have tried it more often.
scott