Just wanted to hear the comments from those who have not played Winged Foot -- either the West or East and if they were moved by the telecast to put the course (West) as a "must play" when coming to the metro NY area.

My take on a number of other GCA folks who have played the course is that the West gets grudging respect -- no deep love as you often see with some other Tillie courses like Fenway and the like.

Like I said -- this thread is for those who have not played there. Many thanks ...

P.S. Please try to provide comments without thinking that the overall set-up of the West is akin to what the players experienced during the championship.

I'd love to play both of them Matt

it seems like a true overall examination of one's game:  straight driving, approaches that better be true, DEEP bunkers, and even if one's approaches are true, one must still deal with those greens

Matt

I've not played there but after visiting WFW on Tuesday, I'd like to give it a shot from the white tees. It is a test of golf under everyday play given the rating and slope:

Blue-Men 76.1/145 @7229y
   
Black-Men 74.7/140 @6928y
   
White-Men 72.9/138 @6592y

I understand many members prefer the East for everyday play.

Matt,
I must say that when the telecast finished I didn't have the feeling, "Wow, wouldn't it be great to play there!" that I ALWAYS have following the Masters and the British, and almost always after the PGA.  (Though of course with an invitation I'd be there tomorrow!)  All in all, Winged Foot looked like a tough slog that would leave a 6 handicap pretty beat up by the end of a day from any tees.

I would differ with some of the other posters on this thread.  Fairways narrowed to between 20 and 26 yds. wide is NOT a great test of straight driving.  That width, bordered by heavy rough is penal golf only; NOBODY hits it that straight routinely, and the stats for the tournament bear that out.

By contrast, it was very, very interesting to see a major in which the green speeds seemed more or less manageable.  Especially the first day, the players seemed caught by surprise by the the more "ordinary" speeds.

I'll sum it up: for me, Winged Foot would be much, much farther down my personal wish list than it's rankings in the U.S. and the world.  It may be a great, great test, but it just doesn't look like much fun.

Matt,

George P had a similar post a few pages back that has some good details.

Based upon what I saw the greens and the par 3's there are world class. The comment about Bethpage Black's tame greens and how great these look makes me wonder how Tilly could have made both of these courses so bold, albiet one w/ much tamer greens.

I do think that the set up is tough to imagine it being much different. I played Oak Hill East a while ago and the rough was managable. I could advance the ball to the green in every case. Do they set up WF the same way for member play or is it the rough kept extremly tough?

Haven't seen any of the other area Tilly courses. How does Quaker Ridge stand up, and for that matter how much of what is at QR still  Tilly?

Would it be a must play? Sure why wouldn't it be. Given ultimate access to all the great NY area courses, where would it fall in your wish list?



BTW - White tee's here too. No way I'd even think about playing that from the tips. Much too brutal!!

WFW is basically flat, yet it is terriffic.  Is there a single course in Florida in the same league as WFW?  So I wonder if the trees make the course in the end or why can't someone build a similar course in Florida?

Matt

I'm thinking of using 2 putters at WFW. 1 may not be enough for me. I'll need a very experienced caddy to help me out on those greens.

The caddies are phenomenal... at least in my experience. I made 4 putts of over 25 feet the last time I played there... unbelievable green reading talent.

If those greens showed that much contour on TV, they must be totally unreal in person.

What would be interesting is to see Bethpage Black with the kind of greens Winged Foot possesses. They might still be playing the "02 Open !!!

P.S. For those who have responded and those thinking -- do you believe the push-up greens serve the purpose that Tillie originally intended in making people really execute on the approach?

For those who have responded and those thinking -- do you believe the push-up greens serve the purpose that Tillie originally intended in making people really execute on the approach?

Absolutely. Which is why the Open rough was over the top. WF's greens are plenty challenging enough on their own to require great shot making. I would have loved to have seen some of that at the Open. Unfortunately, the set up excluded it (with rare exceptions).

What would be interesting is to see Bethpage Black with the kind of greens Winged Foot possesses. They might still be playing the "02 Open !!!

P.S. For those who have responded and those thinking -- do you believe the push-up greens serve the purpose that Tillie originally intended in making people really execute on the approach?

I think Montgomerie would certainly say so!

I'm sure it would be cool to play there just for the atmosphere, history, etc., but it's not on my to-play list.  I was at Bandon during the US Open and the contrast between Winged Foot and the courses there was so striking (as was the quality of golf being played at each site).  Give me the width, the strategic options off the tee, the undulating fairways, the ground game options.  Straightforward parkland courses, no matter how good they are, don't quite do it for me.  

Give me the width, the strategic options off the tee, the undulating fairways, the ground game options.  Straightforward parkland courses, no matter how good they are, don't quite do it for me.  

It's often said that Quaker Ridge is a finer SITE for a golf course than Winged Foot.

Strangely enough, the Winged Foot property is about the flattest piece of land in that part of Westchester County. Very little topographical relief throughout the West Course. My best guess is the highest point on the course would be the 10th tee right next to the clubhouse grill room and lowest point would be somewhere on the 4th or 5th hole or where you play your approach shot from on 12 or 15.

It's hard to say.. because the difference between that point and the 10th tee would be 30 ft tops. That said, only a couple of the holes FEEL flat.  Ironically, the first hole is probably the flattest, yet has the green with the most slope on it. It would be a pretty vanilla long hole if you took this away. The green complexes are what defines the CHARACTER of the course, if not the entire challenge.

*SIDENOTE* That's one thing TV takes away-the relative severity of slopes on most golf courses. When you visit Augusta, you pass a lot of old folks huffing and puffing up 18 after being out near Amen Corner. After watching on TV for many years-they had no idea what a hike it is back to the clubhouse + entrance. Probably explains why the 40 year badge holders like to camp out... it's too hilly to follow groups around unless you're under 50.