http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1173819/index.htm%EF%BB%BFShe says CB is not "quite ready for prime time" and gives following reasons:
• The sandy soil dried out last week, and the course got out of control. The Open will be played in the softer conditions of June, but managing the firmness will be a challenge.>>I think this is a non-starter. Mike Davis went overboard during the stroke play because he was not sure how the course was going to play, but now they do and rest of the week setup (especially Sunday) was pretty ideal. The fact that it is in June will make it easier to control the firmness of the course.
• The extreme slopes around the greens make the penalty for hitting a poor shot greater than the reward for hitting a good one. The Open should identify a golfer's skill, not his luck.>>Shouldn't poor shots be punished??? Especially at US Open level??? It is pretty simple at Chambers, miss to the proper side and you will have a decent try at birdie/par, miss to the wrong side and you are proabably 50 yards away with bogey/double in your face. To me, that is the beauty of the this course and why it is such a stern, but fair, test. "Reward for hitting a good one"? You mean the ball doesn't stick when you hit the pin? Too friggin' bad.
• A true links doesn't have elevation changes like those at the par-3 9th or 15th. More important, the slick, dry rough and steep slopes are a dangerous combination for galleries.>>This is the most salient point she makes. My wife fell 4 times while walking and countless others did so as well. Moving the crowd safely around the dunes will be a challenge. And as I said before, if I can change anything about the course, it would be the 9th. The new tee at 15th is kinda ridiculous as well.
• It's a terrific site for match play, where making a huge number means losing only one hole, but attempting to shoot a 72-hole score on such an extreme course could get ugly. I saw more four-putts than I thought possible from the world's top amateurs.>>It is US Open we are talking about, isn't it? Isn't that the par for the tourney?
• With so many holes playing so many different ways, practice rounds become a guessing game, and play approaches six hours. That's not my idea of sustainability in golf.>>Variety and requiring imagination is now a negative for a golf course??? The round approaching 6 hours is not because of the course, it was only about 20 min to 30 min quicker at the Home Course. These guys need to learn how to play faster.
It is quite amazing to see how the opinions have changed from pre US Am to after US Am. Before US Am, the concern was how EASY the course was going to be because the fairways are so wide and sideboards are so helpful. Now, everybody is crying uncle and saying it is too difficult. Amazing how much conditioning can affect the difficulty of the course.
What do you think about Dottie's points?