There is a terrific photo in this week's print edition of Sports Illustrated that shows Spieth right after his ill-fated tee shot on the 18th hole at TOC during the final round of play at the Open Championship. The photo made me wonder -- similarly to when I visited the TOC several years ago:
Why is the Sunday (last day) pin at the Open Championship at TOC never placed in the upper right corner of the 18th green?
I get the attraction of the usual Sunday pin -- hanging on that ledge, steps from the Valley of Sin. But wouldn't a Sunday upper right pin also yield some interesting strategy?
-- You can drive it forever left on the 18th fairway. But the SI photo, and my recollections, seem to suggest a flatter lie exists the closer one is willing to challenge the right edge of the fairway -- an ideal place to play from if the pin is tucked back-right.
-- The back right of the 18th green -- again, from the photo and my recollections -- looks quite sloped. The player laying back for a pitch could aggressively go at a back-right pin, but an overly aggressive pitch results in all kinds of trouble, and even a modestly overly aggressive play would seem to yield a dicey downhill putt.
-- A back-right pin brings in a notable feature of the 18th hole -- OB along the entire right side of play, with the fairway running up right to the OB -- that rarely comes into play in the final day of play, if at all during the tournament.
I've been watching the Open at The Old Course for years, and can't recall ever seeing a pin back there. Any particular reason why?