[Steve Okula]

I played golf with my commander today and we had this conversation.  He basically knows nothing about any of this, but he knows I have an interest in it and want to get my masters from Penn State in turf. "

Ben,

I've been reading your posts since you began on this site, and I have always found them to be well-considered and thoughtful. No doubt you have a passion for the game and the playing fields. You are evidently an intelligent young man with loads of potential and your whole lfe in front of you.

Speaking as a thirty-year superintendent myself, if you are considering a career in this business, do yourself a favor and forget it. You could do one hell of a lot better.

[Anthony_Nysse]

Ben,
  Disregard Steve's statement. If you have am interest and it drives you when you wake up in the morning, by all means, jump in heads first. This is coming from the son of a 40 year Superintendent and I've been in the business for 15 years myself and look forward to EVERY DAY! If that's your passion, don't sell yourself short!

[Bradley Anderson]

When you completely loose the weaker strain of grass on a green to 100% dehydration you are going to have the ball rolling across shriveled leaves for a stretch and now on to turgid leaves, now shriveled leaves, and so on. That's why we saw so many balls zig zagging at the end of the roll.

As a greenkeeper it made me sick to see something like that because you don't have to do that to achieve the objective. That's not good tournament management - its vandalism. Or at least it was reckless.

Many really skilled putters gauge the speed of their ball to die at the hole. Those guys who putt like that were punished at the U.S. Open. Why? So that the smallest greens in tournament golf would be hard to hold?   Why do you need to trick up targets that are that small?

I understand that because these guys can hit the ball so far, we now have to set up these situations where they can't get on the green without hitting lofted clubs farther than they are designed to launch a ball. I understand that that's why they dry greens out for these events. But I would wager that they didn't plan to do that much damage to the weaker strains of grass. I think someone left his soil probe in New Jersey is what actually happened.

But anyways, now you have a situation where the golf course is not rewarding one of the most important dimensions of the game of golf - putting.    

I am happy for the champion, but when you see a good kid loose a 7 stroke lead, and now he has to live with the shame of the worst choke on US Open Sunday, you gotta ask why?

[Richard Choi]

So, what do you think it will be like at Chambers Bay in 5 years?  That greens turf sward has reportedly had trouble establishing itself.  By the time they get the US OPen, I'd have to bet that the greens there will be mottled with a high percent of poa.  And, what purity will that fescue in FWs or surrounds of greens have by then?

Great question RJ. Based on current conditions, I think they will be okay. Of course, things could change over next 2 or 3 years, but so far they have been very successful fighting back poa. I believe that has to do with the fact that they have been very stingy with watering. They really try to keep the greens dry so that poa will have a tough time getting a hold.

However, this summer has been very very wet and very very cool. If poa is ever going to encroach on Chambers Bay, this is the year. They will need some really hot and dry spells soon.

[Matt_Ward]

 jeffwarne:

I'm waiting for all the self-proclaimed traditionalists on GCA who throw forward the same pablum each year -- "let's see the pros suffer" -- "it's OK to have such near dead greens determine the national champion" -- and on and on it goes.

Bradley A said it best -- with such small targets why the need to trick things up? Good question.

Thank heavens PB didn't have any serious wind like the final round in '92.

Anything above the hole was a test of utter futility.

[Bill Brightly]

Matt, you raised a point about wind that I was thinking about while watching this weekend: If it had been really windy, would the USGA demanded watering to keep the the ball at rest on the green?

And if the wind was tough enough to raise scores, would the USGA have softened the greens  as a counter measure to higher than expected scoring?

[Ben Sims]

I played golf with my commander today and we had this conversation.  He basically knows nothing about any of this, but he knows I have an interest in it and want to get my masters from Penn State in turf. "

Ben,

I've been reading your posts since you began on this site, and I have always found them to be well-considered and thoughtful. No doubt you have a passion for the game and the playing fields. You are evidently an intelligent young man with loads of potential and your whole lfe in front of you.

Speaking as a thirty-year superintendent myself, if you are considering a career in this business, do yourself a favor and forget it. You could do one hell of a lot better.

Steve, 

Let's not threadjack--and I appreciate your thoughts--we can continue this through PM's.  I just wanted to acknowledge you publicly. 

I think that naive wonderment is the hallmark of any true adventurist in life.  That's how I was first attracted to airplanes all those years ago.   Now I can say that I am a seasoned wonderer as a pilot.  I just want to become a seasoned wonderer in the world of golf courses.  My naivety now can be tempered in golf by an education that I would otherwise be unable to get while I am still commisioned as an officer. 

Unless you know of some cool DoD job that'll allow me to consult and reno golf courses for the Air Force.

[Brian Laurent]

Many really skilled putters gauge the speed of their ball to die at the hole. Those guys who putt like that were punished at the U.S. Open. Why? So that the smallest greens in tournament golf would be hard to hold?   Why do you need to trick up targets that are that small?

Many skilled players play a fade...is it unfair that a tree stands in the way of them playing their most comfortable shot?  Play the shot that gives you the best chance for success.

[Bradley Anderson]

Many really skilled putters gauge the speed of their ball to die at the hole. Those guys who putt like that were punished at the U.S. Open. Why? So that the smallest greens in tournament golf would be hard to hold?   Why do you need to trick up targets that are that small?

Many skilled players play a fade...is it unfair that a tree stands in the way of them playing their most comfortable shot?  Play the shot that gives you the best chance for success.

Bill,

Skilled putting is and allways has been a tradition of championship play. The USGA destroyed putting conditions at Pebble Beach. And the crazy thing is, they didn't have to do that to achieve their objective. I am convinced it wasn't even intentional. I think they f-ed up and didn't realize they had pushed it too far with some of those weaker grasses. There is nothing to defend about what happened.

[Todd Bell]

I am happy for the champion, but when you see a good kid loose a 7 stroke lead, and now he has to live with the shame of the worst choke on US Open Sunday, you gotta ask why?


Because he puked on himself before he got to the putting surface.  Hell, on #3 or 4?? he hit it twice and never left his shadow.  You can't two putt for a triple and blame the turgidity or lack there of. 

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