Four Days to Save Four Hundred Years of Golf

[Paul Gray]

So I exaggerate but....

Forget about the annual adventure into proper golf, aka The Open Championship, 99% of golfers view links golf as some sort of quirky game from a bygone era and not relevant to the game they play.

The US Open is different. For years now the golfing public have listened to talk of narrow fairways and thick rough and taken it to be the definition of quality. On the 12th of June, as you're all fully aware, the wider golfing community is going to see something they're really not too familiar with. Make no mistake, this is The Golden Age/Minimalism going public.

The impressions of all those millions of club golfers could, just could, shape the future appearance of the game.

So, what's the most/least/best/worst we can expect?

[jeffwarne]

or simply perpetuate eye candy

[Jason Thurman]

This championship alone won't mean much. It's four days on a course presented in a manner that less than 1% of other courses in the US could achieve. It's no different than a links course in that regard - the sandy, scrubby presentation of Pinehurst isn't an option for most courses and thus it will do very little to influence opinions on what most golfers' home courses should look like. On top of that, Tiger isn't playing so ratings will be poor, further diminishing Pinehurst's influence on the public.

However, every US Open site through 2018 is slated for a firmer, faster course with minimal tree encroachment and fairly wide fairways. I think TV's influence on mass opinions is VASTLY overestimated, but if I'm wrong then I guess there's a small chance that those 20 days of golf over four years will make some difference.

Realistically, I think it will be simple economics that cause a shift in course maintenance and the benefits of a more minimalist approach. That shift is fiscally inevitable and it will have little to do with an NBC telecast.

[Jonathan Mallard]

Remember, less people will see this than The Masters.

So, just how much does that skew the conversation?

[Quinn Thompson]

…Hopefully, it has that "Augusta effect" come the Monday morning after the Opens; and that Club Committees across the country will be asking themselves: Why do we have flowers around the tee-boxes ? Why is our sand so God-Damn white and our bunkers so pure ? How much cash do we waste on irrigation anyway ? Do we need all these groundsmen to string trim around trees ? And so on and so on…

I'm hoping it has an effect in that regard, and that the change comes for sure, slowly; but for sure.

[Steve Lang]

  about as much influence as Shinnecock..   not much


about as much influence as Chambers Bay hosting the US Am... not much; while I enjoyed seeing CB on tv, it really didn't impress as much as being there.. camera angles being what they are... limited


probably will help tourism a little to the Sand Hills and mess up traffic for both open periods 

[Tom_Doak]

about as much influence as Shinnecock..   not much
 

I do think the U.S. Opens at Shinnecock got more clubs to embrace the idea of long native rough between holes ... not that it is always appropriate to other sites.

I can't see how the sandy scrub native areas at Pinehurst will be emulated by the typical American club.

Save the Planet!

[Daryl David]

Am I the only one reading the thread title that thought we had 4 days to save Darius Oliver's website?   

[Tom Bacsanyi]

about as much influence as Shinnecock..   not much
 

I do think the U.S. Opens at Shinnecock got more clubs to embrace the idea of long native rough between holes ... not that it is always appropriate to other sites.

I can't see how the sandy scrub native areas at Pinehurst will be emulated by the typical American club.

Save the Planet!

When did Oakmont do their massive tree removal program?  Did Shinny in '04 have anything to do with it?

I agree with others.  If the typical course in the inland US just let the periphery of holes go native, there would just be a bunch of thistle and dandelion.  You can't just throw some fescue seed down and forget about it.  It has to be seeded and irrigated for establishment, then invasive species have to be weeded out.   I am also curious as to what level #2's scrub areas are maintained.  There have to be invasive species that try to get in there, so I'm wondering how often the crew is in their spraying, pulling, etc.  Meanwhile, the bermuda from the fairways will try to charge on in there, so you may be spraying Round Up around the edges.   I'm not a hater, I love the way it looks and most likely plays, and it surely will save water and decrease chemical usage, but to think that it won't be maintained would be folly. 

[Tom Bacsanyi]

"It will either be historical, or hysterical. I'll let you know."

--Bob Farren, Pinehurst Maintenance Director

Good article from Turfnet on the maintenance aspects of #2:

http://www.turfnet.com/page/news.html/_/peeling-back-pinehurst-r308

[Tim Bert]

Am I the only one reading the thread title that thought we had 4 days to save Darius Oliver's website?   

I honestly thought that is what this subject was. I was thinking "what could have happened" when I clicked on it.  No smileys needed.

[mike_beene]

Hopefully it will give momentum to the trend ( at least there seems to be a trend at courses I play) to mow more areas around greens instead of leaving so much greenside rough.

[Quinn Thompson]

…from a good Irish Poet…"…you don't want to stereotype the U.S. Open…"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=ga9j1XAL7YE

[Paul Gray]

Title amended to save confusion. Apologies to Planet Golf. 

[Patrick_Mucci]

Paul Gray and Tom Doak,

I think the influence on golf, irrespective of the degree, will largely be determined by the announcers.

If they embrace what they see along with the playing conditions I believe it will have a positive effect.

As to the degree, that remains to be seen.

[BCowan]

I don't see this happening.  It would be cool if people could imagine playing their home course prior to the early 90's when duel sprinklers became the norm.  Just un-watered rough would be a nice thought but is highly unlikely. 

[Bill Brightly]

Hopefully it will give momentum to the trend ( at least there seems to be a trend at courses I play) to mow more areas around greens instead of leaving so much greenside rough.

Mike, I agree that this would be the best outcome that we could hope for with respect to the typical parkland course n the US. I don't think the use of more "scrubby" areas is really relevant but rather, that fairways could be widened to offer far more angles to the green, and a reduction in the reliance upon heavy rough as a way to penalize tee balls.

The problem is that you simply can't change the mowing patterns. That must be accompanied by a change in the irrigation system and perhaps even changing the type of grass. It is not as simple and inexpensive as you might think.

[Thomas Dai]

Arn't there two back-to-back US Opens on the same course?

So, is it 4 days to save 400 yrs of golf, or should it be 8 days?


atb