How Wide Should a Firm and Fast Fairway Be?

[MCirba]

We've had a long rainless stretch here in Eastern PA such that my last 3 or so rounds on courses with some good elevation change have meant that hitting fairways requires thought, restraint, and execution.  Sometimes it was almost impossible so you'd have to think of the best place to miss.  It was some great fun but then required an approach to greens almost as firm with much reduced spin.


I'm watching the US Open preview and seeing a good potential for similar conditions and demands this week. 


I'm not sure my question in the title here is exactly rhetorical but I'm not sure I would like folks to do much more but consider these questions holistically and discuss.   Should be an interesting next  few days.  Enjoy!

[Tom_Doak]

We've had a long rainless stretch here in Eastern PA such that my last 3 or so rounds on courses with some good elevation change have meant that hitting fairways requires thought, restraint, and execution.  Sometimes it was almost impossible so you'd have to think of the best place to miss.  It was some great fun but then required an approach to greens almost as firm with much reduced spin.


I'm watching the US Open preview and seeing a good potential for similar conditions and demands this week. 


I'm not sure my question in the title here is exactly rhetorical but I'm not sure I would like folks to do much more but consider these questions holistically and discuss.   Should be an interesting next  few days.  Enjoy!

If it's firm and fast, the rough is also usually pretty thin, no?


I find that Nature tends to balance out these things pretty well.

[MCirba]

If it's firm and fast, the rough is also usually pretty thin, no?


I find that Nature tends to balance out these things pretty well.

Tom,


I agree that's usually the case but we had a good, cool early growing season and a combination of overwatering compensation lately for the heat pooling down into the lower rough areas enhancing that growth its a bit of a pick your poison scenario.


I'm also thinking this week's USGA setup is something similar.

[Matt Schoolfield]

I think a lot of course personality is defined by pain vs forgiveness.


Firm and fast and open is a good time, you can use other factors to inflict penal challenges.


Firm fast and narrow… doesn’t seem like a good time. If the course is incredibly short, I could see it as fun, but I’ve never seen low-luck high-skill penal courses as anything but a grind.

[Carl Rogers]

Cross slope dependant, I would presume??

[Sean_A]

We've had a long rainless stretch here in Eastern PA such that my last 3 or so rounds on courses with some good elevation change have meant that hitting fairways requires thought, restraint, and execution.  Sometimes it was almost impossible so you'd have to think of the best place to miss.  It was some great fun but then required an approach to greens almost as firm with much reduced spin.


I'm watching the US Open preview and seeing a good potential for similar conditions and demands this week. 


I'm not sure my question in the title here is exactly rhetorical but I'm not sure I would like folks to do much more but consider these questions holistically and discuss.   Should be an interesting next  few days.  Enjoy!

There is golf and there is championship golf. Clearly, championships don't require the width I would like to enjoy. On the other hand, I don't think watching a hack fest is entertaining. I don't know how wide LACC is, but some of that rough looks brutal and contrary to the ethos of the design.

Ciao

[Thomas Dai]

Suggest you can’t really have too much width as long as the terrain and the budget permit it or there are animals to nibble it. To paraphrase Dr MacK, there’s no fun in looking for a lost golf ball (especially if it’s someone else’s ball!).
Plus the 5” between the ears element of the game becomes more paramount as angles for approaches become important and optional ways to play shots results too. Yippee time!
Atb

[Mike_Trenham]

The issue is not how wide the fairways are until the only approach to most of the greens is through the air.  If you must bounce/run the ball onto the greens then angles matter more.

[Mark Pearce]

We've had a long rainless stretch here in Eastern PA such that my last 3 or so rounds on courses with some good elevation change have meant that hitting fairways requires thought, restraint, and execution.  Sometimes it was almost impossible so you'd have to think of the best place to miss.  It was some great fun but then required an approach to greens almost as firm with much reduced spin.


I'm watching the US Open preview and seeing a good potential for similar conditions and demands this week. 


I'm not sure my question in the title here is exactly rhetorical but I'm not sure I would like folks to do much more but consider these questions holistically and discuss.   Should be an interesting next  few days.  Enjoy!

If it's firm and fast, the rough is also usually pretty thin, no?


I find that Nature tends to balance out these things pretty well.

Not currently in the North East of England.  A very wet cool early Spring has morphed into a warm, dry June.  Fairways are firming up but the rough has taken advantage of the warmth to grow and, as yet, remains thick and lush.  If the weather stays warm for another week or two, it'll thin out, for sure but, at the moment, we have thick "lost ball" rough just off a number of fairways at the Northumberland.