So what's better? Meaner PGA or kinder and gentler USGA.

[Terry Lavin]

They seem to have switched roles this year?

[Tim_Cronin]

I'll take this year's PGA for the drama and excitement of seeing players perform, or fail to perform, under the pressure of a major. Look how many players had a chance on Sunday. Eagles and double-bogeys abounded. And the winner triple-bogeyed! This was much like this year's Masters Tournament, except for about 400 more commercials.

[Jeff_Brauer]

Taken in the bigger context, while the PGA has been villified over the years for taking their championship to some "questionable" venues, in reality, they made a conscious decision years ago to try to bring new courses into the major rotation, when the USGA seemed stuck on a dozen or so, the Masters on one, and the British Open on 7.  We should give them Kudos for that, or golf would have been stuck in an awful rut.

The Masters will never move of course, and the USGA seems to be branching out on its own using newer courses, perhaps seeing some of the success the PGA did have?  It is sort of like Mcdonalds vs the local restaurants - you know what you get with the old standbys, and it can go either way trying some place new (to you). 

At any rate, the PGA would seemingly get some credit for newer courses being used more often.  And, they need to, although maybe Merion in 2013 will show that the shorter old courses can still hold the majors without the major challenge being bending shots around 200 yard dogleg points, like WF.

Not sure what AAC and Bradley's win means about the relationship between winners and venues.  It still seems rather random and any kind of winner (crowd fave, grizzled vet, rookie, unknown) could probably win at any time.  It did occur to me that the PGA might have meant more to a Bradley, from a PGA family, than it did to some tour pros who view the PGA as the fourth most important major, regardless of the venue, and that may have inspired his great play.

[Alex Miller]

Kinder and Gentler USGA, because although I was disappointed with the venue this year, then next decade looks AWESOME.

Beyond Kiawah next year (cool), but Baltusrol, Valhalla, Quail Hollow, Whistling Straits are all on tap too. They're fine courses but I'll take the US Open courses over those every time.

[Bill_McBride]

The USGA's motivation in expanding its rota has more to do with exposing tournament golf to public vs. private venues than expansion for the sake of expansion. 

I didn't care a lot for Rees Jones work at AAC, and wouldn't have much chance for a decent score from the forward most tees, but as a venue for great tournament golf?  Priceless.  That's the most exciting finish in a long time.  That was the toughest last four holes since the "Bear Trap" in a gale!   Congratulations to Keegan Bradley for not disappearing after the mess at 15. 

[Jeff_Brauer]

I found myself wondering if the order of the holes does really matter.  Turns out, 4 tough ones with little birdie opportunity can swing a tourney just as easily as if there is one driveable or reachable par 5.

The course and players actually went to script, with one player building up a 4 shot lead in anticipation of the finishing stretch, but then using it all up when his competitor drained a long putt on 17, after taking a triple himself.

Would all birdies have been any more exciting?  Is a three shot swing in a few holes any less exciting if its par to plus 4?

[Anthony Gray]

  I'm going for kinder and gentler. I hate watching pros hacking balls into the fairway all day.

  Anthony

[PCCraig]

I don't mind birdies in US Opens or PGA's...just so long as the pros actually have to make a somewhat strategic decision in order to set themselves up for one. Fairways, greens, and two putts have a tendency to be pretty boring to watch....which we will get plenty of next year at Olympic Club when the USGA overcompensates for this year.

[Terry Lavin]

I don't see much difference between the Tom Meeks approach, for lack of a better moniker, and the Kerry Haigh approach, to setting up a major championship.  Meeks, and the championship committee that he answered to, was of the mind that a course should be set up as a very difficult examination.  A golf course's individual design didn't necessarily need to be penal to ensure that sort of torturous setup, but it sure helps.  This past week's setup was influence more by the penal nature of the design of the course than by Haigh's setup.  We're not talking big rough and stupid fast greens.  The greens were fast enough for a major, but they certainly were puttable for men of this caliber.  The tournament was extraordinarily difficult because of the design of the course, with holes that featured water on the left and a string of huge bunkers on the right, requiring golfers to hit a club that would leave the ball on what at times seemed to be an ironing board fairway.  Or the 250 yard par three with water front and right, with little to no bailout on the left, save a bunker or two that would leave the player with a shot that brought the water back into play.  There wasn't anything the setup guys could do to effect any change on those holes.

I asked this question, because I've noticed that there's some inconsistency (some might say hypocrisy) in this group's reaction to major championships.  I've seen a lot of whining about tough setups or penal golf courses that don't provide a player with the much beloved "options" that people clamor for.  But then when the pros play a course that doesn't kick them between the legs, people whine even louder that the course wasn't up to the proper standard for a major.

Personally, I have no problem with a very difficult setup for a major championship.  I greatly prefer difficulty being supplied in the form of great fairway bunkering, high rough and fast greens as opposed to what we saw this week, but either way, the players are confronted with playing outside of their comfort zones.  Giving the best players in the world options off the tee on too many holes just rewards them with an opportunity to capitalize on the option after a substandard shot.  That's too much of a benefit during a major championship, IMHO. 

So if you're a fan of tough courses and tough setups, just wait for the torture chamber at Kiawah next year.  In Meeks' opinion, that is the toughest course in America, so it starts out with all the tools to torture the pro players.  A US Open in August.