Is Any Course Great in Soft Conditions?

[Phil Benedict]

There is a lot of carping about Congressional and justifiably so; it's a dull venue.  But even a great course under these conditions would be a ho hum show for the pros.  Without some bounce golf is a lot less interesting, particularly for ridiculously skilled players.

[Tom_Doak]

Phil:

The one time I attended The Masters, in 1983, it was extremely wet -- the only year they ever had to finish on a Monday.  Lots of players had trouble with spinning the ball back off the greens into trouble; only the guys who were really good ball strikers could figure out how to handle those conditions.  [Ballesteros won.]

I think the best courses are generally still the best courses in bad weather -- but not as good as when they dry out.

[Mike H]

Phil

It sounds like you are talking about two different things.  One, are golf tournament any fun to watch when the playing conditions are soft?  Two, does soft conditions affect how you judge a course? 

[Phil Benedict]

Mike,

The conditions don't change whether a course is great, but it's hard for any course to play great when it's too soft.  The fact that Augusta was more than a dart-throwing contest when it got wet is pretty good indicator of the quality of the architecture.