Pebble Beach setup update (with pictures)

[Matt_Cohn]

I rode around Pebble Beach yesterday afternoon with Casey Boyns, their #1 caddie and legendary Northern California amateur golfer. A few notes about the setup at this point:


Generally, the less-than-driver holes have been narrowed significantly, like by 1/3 of the fairway or more: 1, 4, 8, 11, 15. (Maybe 16 too, couldn't tell from the path.) Here's 4:



And 11:



Number 6 has also been narrowed, although nobody was probably trying to hit it short of the bunkers anyway:



During the US Am, players were hitting the ball on the barren hill left of the cart path. That area is now being filled with grasses that are over a foot tall in places, and they're clearly working on growing more. Going left of the path will not be an option in June.



Speaking of par 5's, 14 has been narrowed and twistified:



The back of the green is shaved, but the left side is not.



They just stopped mowing the rough last week so it wasn't that high yet. We saw a lot of hand-watering all over the course. I wouldn't worry about whether the rough will grow enough between now and June!


Here are a few more random pictures from my tour.

[Peter Pallotta]

Matt -
you're a very good golfer and seem like a practical and level-headed fellow, so (myself being neither) I'd be interested in your views on/opinion about the set-up?
For me, the changes are certainly aesthetically unpleasing - though I recognize that as being of little importance to most, especially in a tournament context.

[Greg Smith]

In some of the photos, the lighting vs. the half-and-half mowing is throwing me off -- for instance, the photo of 9 and 10.  It looked impossibly narrow for a second before I realized I was looking at half a fairway.  The photo of 4 looks the same way, but less obviously -- on second review I think the far left portion of fairway (left of the central bunker) is now rough, whereas the right half near the cliff is still fairway (though it doesn't look that way at first glance).

The lighting on the photos of 11 and 6 gives you a more representative view I think.

[David_Tepper]

In some of the photos, the lighting vs. the half-and-half mowing is throwing me off -- for instance, the photo of 9 and 10.  It looked impossibly narrow for a second before I realized I was looking at half a fairway.

Greg S. -

Yes, I got the same impression. At the risk of going against the conventional wisdom here, I am not a fan of the "one cut up, one cut back" way of mowing fairways that is so common place these days. In many cases it does not visually define the true width of the fairway.

DT

[Adam Clayman]

Great pics Matt. Casey is one of the very best humans. 


Peter, Having a lush modern set-up presentation, with a classic cut, might be what is jarring. Hopefully in June they'll have some tawny.


Recalling the set up in 2000, specifically the beautiful eyebrows from uber long grasses, on the tops of certain bunkers. I can't help but think, This looks more like they put Merion in Florida.

[Joe Hancock]

The problem isn’t the half and half pattern, or any other pattern for that matter. The problem is the superintendents who insist on “burning in” whatever pattern they choose by mowing the same direction over and over...and over. It amazes me also that supers come right of the gates, right after construction/ seeding/ grassing by doing this, and it has lasting effects. I was noticing on Twitter how many supers post pictures of their “lasers” or “arrows” or whatever terms they use for straight, burned in mowing lines. Ugh. I fully expect to hear from a few of them after this condemnation, and I’m OK with that...It bothers me enough to defend my opinion.


Personal preferences, I know, but that doesn’t mean I have to understand. (Emoticon omitted intentionally)

[Matt_Cohn]

Matt -
you're a very good golfer and seem like a practical and level-headed fellow, so (myself being neither) I'd be interested in your views on/opinion about the set-up?
For me, the changes are certainly aesthetically unpleasing - though I recognize that as being of little importance to most, especially in a tournament context.

A few of the areas that were converted to rough look a bit odd because there are just these wide, flat, featureless expanses of rough. The fairways clearly don't fill up the intended corridors and there is a visual mismatch there.


Also, I'm not sure I've ever seen a fairway pattern that was so burned in. The pictures of 4 and 9 are accurate.


It's going to be hard as hell though. A few folks who would know are predicting -5 with normal weather. That would be pretty amazing playing.

[Mark_F]

One day Americans will realise bunkers aren't meant to be in the rough, and the game will flourish.

[Matthew Petersen]

4 looks awful. I guess I'm glad the right side is still fairway and so it just looks awful and isn't quite as awful as it looks.

[Kyle Harris]

The problem isn’t the half and half pattern, or any other pattern for that matter. The problem is the superintendents who insist on “burning in” whatever pattern they choose by mowing the same direction over and over...and over. It amazes me also that supers come right of the gates, right after construction/ seeding/ grassing by doing this, and it has lasting effects. I was noticing on Twitter how many supers post pictures of their “lasers” or “arrows” or whatever terms they use for straight, burned in mowing lines. Ugh. I fully expect to hear from a few of them after this condemnation, and I’m OK with that...It bothers me enough to defend my opinion.


Personal preferences, I know, but that doesn’t mean I have to understand. (Emoticon omitted intentionally)

+1, actually.


The goal is to make the grass shorter and spend as little of the stakeholder's money in the process.

The goal is NOT to draw attention to the first half of that last sentence.

[jeffwarne]

The goal is to make the grass shorter and spend as little of the stakeholder's money in the process.

The goal is NOT to draw attention to the first half of that last sentence.

well they've certainly made huge strides in the first half of the first sentence.
Now maybe just give us a little back so we can use something besides the bottom grooves.....and maybe see a ball settle somewhere that's not dead flat or eventually up against the rough. There are many events I play now where they have to use a white dotted line to distinguish fairway from green