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Joey Chase

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Warm season grassed courses hosting the U.S. Open?
« on: June 13, 2012, 12:43:22 PM »
As an offshoot to other recent threads concerning the coming open, are there any warm season courses that could host a U.S. Open?  Could it ever return to Riviera, or are the crowds too large or the course not tough enough?

Tom_Doak

  • Karma: +2/-1
Re: Warm season grassed courses hosting the U.S. Open?
« Reply #1 on: June 13, 2012, 12:47:10 PM »
Southern Hills hosted the Open on Bermudagrass fairways; so did Colonial, back in 1941, and Atlanta Athletic Club in the 1970's.  But there just aren't many courses the USGA wants to go to down in the transition zone (or below).  Riviera is kikuyu now, I don't know what it was in 1948.

Jeff_Brauer

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Re: Warm season grassed courses hosting the U.S. Open?
« Reply #2 on: June 13, 2012, 01:01:19 PM »
Champions in Houston was bermuda fw.  I seem to recall it had bent greens at that time, one reason they were so huge.

Anyone with a better memory than me?
Jeff Brauer, ASGCA Director of Outreach

Joey Chase

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Re: Warm season grassed courses hosting the U.S. Open?
« Reply #3 on: June 13, 2012, 01:10:08 PM »
Did Southern Hills, Colonial, or any other have Bermuda greens?  Some of the newer dwarf bermuda greens are pretty good, is it not possible to get them up to the USGA's prefered pace?

Jeff_Brauer

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Re: Warm season grassed courses hosting the U.S. Open?
« Reply #4 on: June 13, 2012, 01:27:34 PM »
Joey,

Colonial was founded on the idea of bent greens in TX.  Southern Hills and almost every course in OK is far enough north for bent greens.
Jeff Brauer, ASGCA Director of Outreach

Scott_Burroughs

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Re: Warm season grassed courses hosting the U.S. Open?
« Reply #5 on: June 13, 2012, 01:49:08 PM »
I seem to recall Pinehurst #2 hosting a U.S. Open or two recently.

Joey Chase

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Re: Warm season grassed courses hosting the U.S. Open?
« Reply #6 on: June 13, 2012, 01:53:08 PM »
I seem to recall Pinehurst #2 hosting a U.S. Open or two recently.
Again, not Bermudagrass greens...

Scott_Burroughs

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Re: Warm season grassed courses hosting the U.S. Open?
« Reply #7 on: June 13, 2012, 01:56:51 PM »
I seem to recall Pinehurst #2 hosting a U.S. Open or two recently.
Again, not Bermudagrass greens...


Your original post didn't mention greens, it just said 'courses'.  Your 2nd post looked like a 2nd, different question.  And, truth be told, I hadn't seen your 2nd question when I was typing up my response....I should have used Reply with Quote.
« Last Edit: June 13, 2012, 02:00:26 PM by Scott_Burroughs »

Matthew Petersen

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Re: Warm season grassed courses hosting the U.S. Open?
« Reply #8 on: June 13, 2012, 02:21:19 PM »
Did Southern Hills, Colonial, or any other have Bermuda greens?  Some of the newer dwarf bermuda greens are pretty good, is it not possible to get them up to the USGA's prefered pace?


Whatever they had on their greens, Goosen thinks it was plenty fast enough for the Open.

Mike Nuzzo

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Re: Warm season grassed courses hosting the U.S. Open?
« Reply #9 on: June 13, 2012, 02:26:13 PM »
Did Southern Hills, Colonial, or any other have Bermuda greens?  Some of the newer dwarf bermuda greens are pretty good, is it not possible to get them up to the USGA's prefered pace?


Joey
The PGA was on Bermuda greens last year
They can be fast enough for anyone
Thinking of Bob, Rihc, Bill, George, Neil, Dr. Childs, & Tiger.

Joey Chase

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Re: Warm season grassed courses hosting the U.S. Open?
« Reply #10 on: June 13, 2012, 02:35:51 PM »
Did Southern Hills, Colonial, or any other have Bermuda greens?  Some of the newer dwarf bermuda greens are pretty good, is it not possible to get them up to the USGA's prefered pace?


Joey
The PGA was on Bermuda greens last year
They can be fast enough for anyone

I didn't know they were bermuda greens at AAC.  The last time I played on bermuda greens was actually in Bermuda at Mid Ocean.  The greens were fast, firm and true.
« Last Edit: June 13, 2012, 02:40:39 PM by Joey Chase »

K. Krahenbuhl

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Re: Warm season grassed courses hosting the U.S. Open?
« Reply #11 on: June 13, 2012, 02:37:09 PM »
Champions in Houston was bermuda fw.  I seem to recall it had bent greens at that time, one reason they were so huge.

Anyone with a better memory than me?

Jeff - The greens at Champions Golf Club were Bermuda grass for the 1969 US Open (probably the last time it was played on that surface).

As Mike stated there is no reason that the Championship couldn't return to the south and play on Bermuda grass again.  The new turf can play as firm and roll as fast as bent does.

Tom_Doak

  • Karma: +2/-1
Re: Warm season grassed courses hosting the U.S. Open?
« Reply #12 on: June 13, 2012, 03:26:08 PM »

I didn't know they were bermuda greens at AAC.  The last time I played on bermuda greens was actually in Bermuda at Mid Ocean.  The greens were fast, firm and true.

Joey:

We rebuilt the greens at Mid Ocean a few years ago [actually over a 3-year stretch] and installed Champion bermuda there.  Previously, they were not fast at all.  It's really only been in the past ten years that the new cultivars of Bermudagrass have been good enough for the USGA, and of course they pick their U.S. Open sites several years in advance.

But, what courses with Bermuda greens would make a good U.S. Open site?

JMEvensky

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Re: Warm season grassed courses hosting the U.S. Open?
« Reply #13 on: June 13, 2012, 03:34:19 PM »

But, what courses with Bermuda greens would make a good U.S. Open site?


Doesn't Peachtree have champion or mini verde?

K. Krahenbuhl

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Re: Warm season grassed courses hosting the U.S. Open?
« Reply #14 on: June 13, 2012, 03:49:27 PM »

But, what courses with Bermuda greens would make a good U.S. Open site?


Doesn't Peachtree have champion or mini verde?

Peachtree has bent greens, zoysia fairways.

Sam Morrow

Re: Warm season grassed courses hosting the U.S. Open?
« Reply #15 on: June 13, 2012, 07:07:24 PM »
Didn't Whitten right an article about this for the PGA Preview last year?

Blake Conant

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Re: Warm season grassed courses hosting the U.S. Open?
« Reply #16 on: June 13, 2012, 08:47:10 PM »
Did Southern Hills, Colonial, or any other have Bermuda greens?  Some of the newer dwarf bermuda greens are pretty good, is it not possible to get them up to the USGA's prefered pace?

As mentioned below, AAC had champion ultra dwarf bermuda greens and they stimped plenty fast at last years PGA.  The zoysia fairways performed great as well. 

Joey Chase

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re: Warm season grassed courses hosting the U.S. Open? New
« Reply #17 on: June 13, 2012, 11:18:12 PM »

I didn't know they were bermuda greens at AAC.  The last time I played on bermuda greens was actually in Bermuda at Mid Ocean.  The greens were fast, firm and true.

Joey:

We rebuilt the greens at Mid Ocean a few years ago [actually over a 3-year stretch] and installed Champion bermuda there.  Previously, they were not fast at all.  It's really only been in the past ten years that the new cultivars of Bermudagrass have been good enough for the USGA, and of course they pick their U.S. Open sites several years in advance.  But, what courses with Bermuda greens would make a good U.S. Open site?


Tom,
I was aware of that renovation work although I thought they were TifEagle.  I guess your question about which courses with one of the newer cultivars could host, is basically the question I was trying to pose in the first place.

"But, what courses with Bermuda greens would make a good U.S. Open site?"

« Last Edit: June 13, 2012, 11:20:46 PM by Joey Chase »

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