Johnny Miller on Augusta and His Hatred of Uphill Holes, Including 18

[Martin Toal]

I tend to agree with a softened view of Miller's statement. I prefer holes where I can see the play needed, particularly on courses I am unfamiliar with. On courses I know, then I mind uphill holes less.

Martin,

without been disrespectful isn't that a 'statement of the bleeding obvious' ? But then should there not be a place for local knowledge. Does not blindness of shot require much more imagination from the player? Is not a course that lays it all out on view in danger of enabling a lack of imagination from the player and playing to a fixed system rather than requiring a problem to be understood and solved.

Skiing is a sport best done mainly downhill but not golf which is a sport that requires diversity.

Jon

Some people love the excitement and mystery of not knowing where the hole goes and only discovering it unwind before them. My swing creates more than enough mystery about the ball's destination without the hole adding a whole lot more.

[Jon Wiggett]

Some people love the excitement and mystery of not knowing where the hole goes and only discovering it unwind before them. My swing creates more than enough mystery about the ball's destination without the hole adding a whole lot more.

But then if you have no idea where your going to hit the ball it make no difference if you can see where your going or not

Jon

[Brent Hutto]

Let me put Martin's complaint another way.

In my round of golf yesterday I hit approximately nine shots that went the general direction and distance I intended. The remaining two dozen full swings either duffed the ball so badly the target's visibility did not matter or else they were wild enough to be potential lost balls (and one of them in fact did result in a lost ball).

I am very glad that each of those nine shot remained within my line of sight until they had stopped rolling. If I'd been playing a course where one or two of them went over a blind ridge, took an unexpected carom and resulted in a lost ball the result would have been a much less enjoyable round.

I know lots of people around here are addicted to thrill of launching shots that they have no way of knowing if they will find. I am not one of them. The odd blind shot here or there is a perfectly OK feature of a golf course but those shots are never, ever my favorite shot on the course. At most its an annoyance to be tolerated.

[Jon Wiggett]

Brett,

I am in agreement with you about only having a few fully blind shots in a round and maybe few extra semi blind shots thrown in for good measure. I say this because I like the variety they offer to the round. Augusta does seem to have quite a few blind drives and second shots compared to many tour courses but I am not sure this is a negative. As for your dislike of blind shots being due to lost ball is that the blindness of the shot or more due to long grass, water hazards etc. that the ball disappears. If there is no where for your ball to disappear then that cannot be the reason you dislike blind shots.

Jon

[George Pazin]

Pretty big difference between not being able to see the results of a good shot and not being able to see the results of a potentially errant shot.

Downhill shots are terrible.

Unless they're at Oakmont.