while Knost has one of the top amateur player of the club on his.

Yes, that would be "Molinari" (sic).  Golf Channel and NBC have gotten it wrong two days in a row...let's see if they can get it correct today...Molinelli.

Glad to Knost win, he was the best player there and deserved to win.  I was kind of pulling for Thompson because he employed a caddy I use named Freddy.  He is the #1 caddie from Olympic and I would have loved to see him win.

No Ed, it was the 12th as well in 1998.

Matt Cohn reported on Aug 19:

"*Two USGA guys have been measuring everyone's launch stats on #17 Lake during the practice rounds with a very fancy machine. I walked by today and asked to see the numbers. Ball speeds varied from the mid 140's to 181.

The next group after I arrived included a guy named John Hurley. I nearly soiled myself when he registered a 191 mph ball speed and 129 mph swing speed. The ball hissed for about 100 yards off the clubface and carried 300 yards, uphill, into the wind.

That was the fastest the two USGA guys had seen all summer, including the US Open. Just for comparison, that's 8-10 mph of ball speed faster than Tiger and Bubba Watson."


Matt:

That's the same young man who pretty much shocked those USGA tech guys at Merion's hole #5 at the US Am in '05. His ball speed that day was higher, something like 194 or 197. He's capable of getting it over 200mph. I checked with the tech guy you probably spoke with out there for about a year after that and he said the USGA has never seen a ball speed that high.

John Hurley got my attention when I ran into him at the Nebraska Match Play Championship. I didn't know the golf course but the fact that he was driving it about 75 to 100 yards past his oponent got my attention. So I measured one of his downwind drives on one par 5 and he got it out there exactly 400 yards. On the next hole into a pretty stiff wind he got it out there 330.

He lost that match on the 19th hole in the quarterfinals in what I called perhaps the best "tortoise vs hare" match I've ever seen.

At Philly CC he drove a ball in practice on #8 almost into the greenside bunker. That hole is 400 yards and uphill.

Some months later I asked him if anyone has ever driven it by him and he said only now and then. Then I asked him if anyone has ever driven it by him with regularity and he just said; "Not yet."

He's a very nice young man who goes to Texas Tech now. Back then he was in high school.

Those players he was with in that practice round at Philly CC were all long and they were pretty stunned by him. The odd thing is most of the time he was about 10-20 yards ahead of them but a few times he was out there 50+ yards ahead of them.

Even though he didn't know the course he seemed to be able to tell right away he really caught one because he would mention it right at the tee before walking forward.

Back then he had a driver he hit pretty low on sort of a flat beeline trajectory. When I asked him about that he said he broke his "optimized" driver but he liked the stock one he had because he could hit it low into the wind of Nebraska.

I can only imagine how far he could hit it if he used an "optimized" driver that got the ball into the air like most of these young bombers today.

He's a big tall rangy young man and it's pretty obvious just looking at him that he can kill it even though he has a pretty short backswing and a very pretty swing at that. However, when his arms and hands are coming through the impact zone you can hardly see them and the ball is outta there so fast it can be hard to pick up sometimes. And you're right, the ball leaving the tee does have a sort of other-worldly zinging sound.

But if anyone wants to see what the ultimate in long ball performance looks like make a point of watching Nebraska's Long John Hurley.

In top flight tournaments (US Open and US Amateur) that the USGA Tech Center monitors with their computer equipment, to my knowledge they have never seen anyone, not even Tiger, Bubba Watson, Daly or J.D. Holmes, with a ball speed as high as this guy.

Tom, how far does Hurley hit his 2 or 3 iron?  As far as most longish players hit their drivers?  

John Hurley hit a 5 iron pin high to the 17th green at Merion East during the Amateur.  It was playing 245 yards.  The hole plays about 20 feet downhill.  At the time of his shot, it was into a bit of a breeze (1/2 club).

So, if the USGA likes the changes at Olympic, Shackelford probably doesn't


From today's SF Chronicle:

"Mike Davis, the USGA's senior director of rules and competitions, gave his stamp of approval to recent changes on Olympic Club's Lake Course - but he also welcomed the idea of restoring some slope to the 18th green.

That green caused consternation during the 1998 U.S. Open, especially when Payne Stewart watched one putt trickle about 20 feet past the hole. Olympic Club officials later flattened the green, figuring that was the only way the USGA would return with another Open (as it will in 2012).

Now many club members think the green is too tame. There is widespread support to raise the back of the putting surface, a move Davis and other USGA officials clearly would endorse.

"It's much easier now, but it's definitely not a docile green," Davis said Sunday. "If it was somewhere between what it is now and what it was (in '98), that probably would be best. If they did change it before 2012, we would support it."

Davis also is leaning toward flipping the pars on two holes for the next Open at Olympic - turning No. 1 into a par-4 and No. 17 into a par-5. No. 1, which weaves downhill and measures 533 yards, ranked as the easiest hole during stroke play at this U.S. Amateur, with an average score of 4.94. The tee would be moved up if the hole played as a par-4.

No. 17, a 491-yard uphill beast with a treacherous green, plays as a par-5 for the members, but it's usually a par-4 in USGA events. No. 17 was the most difficult hole during stroke play, with an average score of 5.06, more than a full stroke over par."

Amazing.  The people at Olympic will now jump.  Everything is done to appease the USGA.  Aside from the turf and tree management, not one thing has been done for the member enjoyment.

I don't understand this in relation to the above...do you know any members who favor the (current) flatter 18th green?

Davis also is leaning toward flipping the pars on two holes for the next Open at Olympic - turning No. 1 into a par-4 and No. 17 into a par-5. No. 1

Randy Haag said exactly the same thing to me earlier this year when I asked him if they really play 17 as a par four.  Playing one as a par four would make that tough stretch start right from the beginning.

In the afternoon round Colt Knost hit the trees on the right of the fifth with his tee shot.  On the walk down to the fairway he said to Mike Davis, "Sir, do you still not think that tree is in the way?".  Mike Davis said "You didn't even hit it" to which Colt said "Yes I did" and then they discussed it all the way down to the fairway.  They seemed to be going back and forth -- arguing each side -- and the only other piece I heard was Colt say "... then you can cut off as much as you want".  Mike Davis had a nice smirk on his face after the conversation, so I wouldn't expect to hear the USGA saying they "endorse" those trees being removed any time soon.

Playing #1 from a 490 or 500 would make for a terribly awkward teeshot.

Besides, given the brutality of 2-5, who needs a 500 yard par-4 for the first hole, too?

Regarding #17, it really was over the top for a par-4. I wonder if 5% of players hit that green in regulation? I certainly doubt if it was as high as 10%. I agree that it would be a "better" hole if played as designed, from 530 or so. I love the idea of a hard par-4 at that point in the round but the combination of 491 yards and that green is a bit much.

If you played #1 as a par 4 then the only par-5's would be #16 and #17. It works for Baltusrol, I guess. I just don't know that #1 makes a good par-4.

Matt, what if 17 was 450 uphill instead of 490 uphill?  It would still be very tough and perhaps not so tough that it's "over the top".  What do you think?

Mike, I don't see a strip of fairway between the bunkers on one encouraging me to go at the green.  Those bunkers are well short and I'd think you have to be able to carry them by quite a bit to get onto the green, even with the downslope.  Is that true?

There is a tee box, about 50 yards up and to the left (near the parking lot) that would make a nice longish par-4 that would not require a big bending tee ball to keep it in play.  

There is fairway grass between the bunkers for every day play and knowing that there is 4" rough makes the players play extra cautious on the distance they hit their layup.  If it was playable, some might take the risk of shoot the gap or maybe not.

I don't think there is any chance of moving the green back as it would only increase the chance of approach shots slicing onto 2 tee ...