Maintenance Issue: How High the Rough?

[Patrick_Mucci]

I remember following Watson and Nickalus at the Crosby at Spyglass in the late 1970's when they were the two best players in the world.  On the 9th Nicklaus hit his drive high over the right hand bunkers into the rough and Watson then did exactly the same.  As I walked down towards their balls, I was thinking "And these guys are the best in the world?!"--until I got to their balls and saw that the rough was moderate and ~180 yards away the pin was at the back left of the green.  They both hit their second shots to birdie range, and it dawned on me that they probably had both hit their drives exactly where they wanted to.  To me the preciision of those drives identified the fact that they were the two best players in the world, and the fact that the rough where they hit their drives was playable (even with increased risk) identified the fact that Spyglass was a course that rewarded well-executed strategies and the super knew how to prepare the course to allow this to happen.


Rich,

I know they were REALLY great, but, hitting it that close to the water hazard, intentionlly, seems suspect.
Any course that defines its "greatness" by the depth of its rough is just fooling itself.

[Patrick_Mucci]

Jim Coleman,

Last week, when it was really wet, I was playing with a fellow, a strong golfer, who hit his drive in tall fescue.

I told another member of our group that he would never get it out of the fescue because he was aiming at the green, instead of laterally, back to the fairway.

He took a mighty swing.
The ball traveled about 4 yards, never getting above waist high, and still in the tall fescue.
The golfer hitting the shot said it felt like he tore his elbow and shoulder.

When grass gets wet, especially tall, thick grass, it's almost impossible to adequately advance the ball.

Spring makes for difficult conditions in the NE.

[mike_malone]

 I agree with Pat's point that in the NE of the US roughs get tough in the spring. I find it to a worthwhile challenge for a short period. It makes the course play differewntly than the rest of the year. As I said earlier, I would complain if it were high in October.

[Mark Steffey]

Padraig,

The other pertinent question would be to define the standards of "improved" for either scenario, and therein lies the rub.

Another pertinent questions, since they are comparing themselves to US Open pedigree courses, are:

Do Oakmont, Merion, et all actually maintain US Open standards all the time, or only when they host the US Open? 

...Oakmont widens their fairways for the Open!!!

[Patrick_Mucci]

Padraig,

The other pertinent question would be to define the standards of "improved" for either scenario, and therein lies the rub.

Another pertinent questions, since they are comparing themselves to US Open pedigree courses, are:

Do Oakmont, Merion, et all actually maintain US Open standards all the time, or only when they host the US Open?  

...Oakmont widens their fairways for the Open!!!

Egads, NO, not another PA myth ?

[Dan Herrmann]

Patrick- it's just because we're jealous of NJ!

[Sean_A]

I understand, for those clubs which don't have budgets for cutting rough every three days in spring, that its tough to keep up with spring growth.  However, the 3 inches comment strike me as a planned rough height - an true maintenance issue, not a budget issue.  I also wonder why in the spring clubs don't cut the rough to an inch with the idea that by the time they cut it again it has reached 2ish inches?  Once growth slows down and the lushness thins out a bit, then keep the rough more like a planned 2 inches?  I would think it better to err on the side of less rough rather than too much rough.

Ciao