KD in CA Posted June 19, 2009 Share Posted June 19, 2009 Yes, it's time for one of the 3 golf threads of the year. Monsoon conditions in New York yesterday...they never should have started but if they canceled the whole day they would have needed to refund millions in ticket fees. It didn't help Tiger any as he was +3 from yesterday and finished his first round at +4. Phil just teed off. First round leaders at -1. Gotta love the low scoring of an US Open. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SageAgainstTheMachine Posted June 19, 2009 Share Posted June 19, 2009 Yes, it's time for one of the 3 golf threads of the year. Monsoon conditions in New York yesterday...they never should have started but if they canceled the whole day they would have needed to refund millions in ticket fees. It didn't help Tiger any as he was +3 from yesterday and finished his first round at +4. Phil just teed off. First round leaders at -1. Gotta love the low scoring of an US Open. Best tournament in golf in my opinion. I've got my money on Francis Ouimet. Harry Vardon and Ted Ray look tough, but I like the young American's spunk. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beerball Posted June 19, 2009 Share Posted June 19, 2009 Gotta love the low scoring of an US Open. Does the scoring really matter? I'm a casual observer & to me as long as everyone plays the same course I don't care if they shoot +1 or -20 (though to me +1 is more fun to watch). (I understand that conditions can vary widely from an early tee time to a late one, but thems the breaks, no?) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
linksfiend Posted June 19, 2009 Share Posted June 19, 2009 I like both the US and British Opens the most when they play public courses - particularly when they play affordable ones like Bethpage. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ramius Posted June 19, 2009 Share Posted June 19, 2009 Yes, it's time for one of the 3 golf threads of the year. Monsoon conditions in New York yesterday...they never should have started but if they canceled the whole day they would have needed to refund millions in ticket fees. It didn't help Tiger any as he was +3 from yesterday and finished his first round at +4. Phil just teed off. First round leaders at -1. Gotta love the low scoring of an US Open. I agree that they should have never even started the 1st round yesterday. Taking one look at the radar yesterday morning would have shown that it was going to pour all day long. I like the (low? high?) scoring in the Open, provided it doesn't make a mockery of the game. I love the long tough courses with crazy rough that make the players hit perfect shots and make fairway play a premium. I also like tough, challenging greens with tricky putts. What i don't like is when they go overboard and make it so unless you hit it in a 5 foot radius, the ball is going to roll 30 yards back off the front of the green, like they did at the Masters? a few years ago. Quick question - With tiger on the green when they suspended play, does he just mark his ball and just leave the mark there overnight? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phlegm Alley Posted June 19, 2009 Share Posted June 19, 2009 Best tournament in golf in my opinion. I've got my money on Francis Ouimet. Harry Vardon and Ted Ray look tough, but I like the young American's spunk. Sage-what do you think about Rory McElroy? In all honesty, this is what golf is all about. One of the few weeks that I root for the golf course to win. Its just too bad that there was so much rain yesterday and they are calling for a similar amount to fall tomorrow. IMHO, it makes the golf course play a little bit easier and even though the golf course is longer than it was in 2002, you'll probably see a number of scores under par. There are a number of guys that I am rooting for. Rocco, David Duval, Jim Furyk. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phlegm Alley Posted June 19, 2009 Share Posted June 19, 2009 Quick question - With tiger on the green when they suspended play, does he just mark his ball and just leave the mark there overnight? I was wondering the same thing. I saw him mark his ball with a tee when play was suspended. You gotta figure that they mowed the greens before play today so what did they do with the mark? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gordio Posted June 19, 2009 Share Posted June 19, 2009 I agree that they should have never even started the 1st round yesterday. Taking one look at the radar yesterday morning would have shown that it was going to pour all day long. I like the (low? high?) scoring in the Open, provided it doesn't make a mockery of the game. I love the long tough courses with crazy rough that make the players hit perfect shots and make fairway play a premium. I also like tough, challenging greens with tricky putts. What i don't like is when they go overboard and make it so unless you hit it in a 5 foot radius, the ball is going to roll 30 yards back off the front of the green, like they did at the Masters? a few years ago. Quick question - With tiger on the green when they suspended play, does he just mark his ball and just leave the mark there overnight? I think you are thinking of the US Open a few years ago at Pinehurst. Those greens were ridiculous. You hit 3 yards short of the pin & you were rolling back 30 yards into a sand trap. With the rain that they have been having, I can not see anybody breaking par over the course of 4 rounds. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gordio Posted June 19, 2009 Share Posted June 19, 2009 Sage-what do you think about Rory McElroy? In all honesty, this is what golf is all about. One of the few weeks that I root for the golf course to win. Its just too bad that there was so much rain yesterday and they are calling for a similar amount to fall tomorrow. IMHO, it makes the golf course play a little bit easier and even though the golf course is longer than it was in 2002, you'll probably see a number of scores under par. There are a number of guys that I am rooting for. Rocco, David Duval, Jim Furyk. The rain is certainly going to make the greens playable, but with the amount of rain they are having hitting it in the fairway is a must. With it beinmg this wet, hit it in the low cut ruff & your going to be hitting a high iron just to punch out, hit it in the high ruff with the way the conditions are & it is just as bad as taking a penalty stroke. I love the US open. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shrader Posted June 19, 2009 Share Posted June 19, 2009 I was wondering the same thing. I saw him mark his ball with a tee when play was suspended. You gotta figure that they mowed the greens before play today so what did they do with the mark? I'm sure they have some very detailed charts of those greens that would be easy enough to keep track of where any markers might be. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ramius Posted June 19, 2009 Share Posted June 19, 2009 I think you are thinking of the US Open a few years ago at Pinehurst. Those greens were ridiculous. You hit 3 yards short of the pin & you were rolling back 30 yards into a sand trap. With the rain that they have been having, I can not see anybody breaking par over the course of 4 rounds. Maybe that was it. I don't mind if you only catch the front or back edge and it rolls off, but i remember the tournament where literally 90% of the balls that hit the green were rolling off, and it got ridiculous. To me, a major championship (like the US Open) should ideally be set up where the winner should be a few shots under par. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phlegm Alley Posted June 19, 2009 Share Posted June 19, 2009 The rain is certainly going to make the greens playable, but with the amount of rain they are having hitting it in the fairway is a must. With it beinmg this wet, hit it in the low cut ruff & your going to be hitting a high iron just to punch out, hit it in the high ruff with the way the conditions are & it is just as bad as taking a penalty stroke. I love the US open. In the US Open, hitting it in the fairway is imperative. However, because of all the rain yesterday, they had to remove the standing water in the fairways into the rough and that has allowed a number of players to get a free drop from the standing water that has accumulated in the rough. The rain has also taken away the ball's ability to roll after landing, preventing the ball from rolling into the rough. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gordio Posted June 19, 2009 Share Posted June 19, 2009 In the US Open, hitting it in the fairway is imperative. However, because of all the rain yesterday, they had to remove the standing water in the fairways into the rough and that has allowed a number of players to get a free drop from the standing water that has accumulated in the rough. The rain has also taken away the ball's ability to roll after landing, preventing the ball from rolling into the rough. I was not aware that they get free drops. That is intersting. Still that course has got to be playing awfull long with all the rain they are having. My friend went there last time they had it at Bethpage & he said that the stands were more rowdy then an NFL football game. Got to love New Yorkers!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ramius Posted June 19, 2009 Share Posted June 19, 2009 I was not aware that they get free drops. That is intersting. Still that course has got to be playing awfull long with all the rain they are having. My friend went there last time they had it at Bethpage & he said that the stands were more rowdy then an NFL football game. Got to love New Yorkers!! The course is playing awfully long, but the greens are very receptive. Players can hit longer irons and stick it on the green. Hell, weir has been sticking the ball with a hybrid. If you wanna watch, go to www.channelsurfing.net Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
linksfiend Posted June 19, 2009 Share Posted June 19, 2009 I was not aware that they get free drops. That is intersting. That's the "casual water" rule http://golf.about.com/od/rulesofgolf/a/golfrulesglance_4.htm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SageAgainstTheMachine Posted June 19, 2009 Share Posted June 19, 2009 How about Mike Weir? I don't care how much easier the course is today, 4 under at Bethpage after 7 is damn impressive. Let's see how he finishes out the round. After he The Masters, I figured Weir would be a staple in the top 10 for years to come, but this is really the first we've heard from him since. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gordio Posted June 19, 2009 Share Posted June 19, 2009 The course is playing awfully long, but the greens are very receptive. Players can hit longer irons and stick it on the green. Hell, weir has been sticking the ball with a hybrid. If you wanna watch, go to www.channelsurfing.net Wow, with those conditions on the green I guess someone will probably break par. I just remember last time they played there & it was wet they were pretty sure anything under par was going to win the tournament. I think woods was the only one that finished under par at minus -3. What is making the course easier now then when they played it back in 02? It is longer now isnt it? Should be an interesting weekend. They are calling for even more rain tomorrow. My guess they are not going to get this thing done until monday. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BuffaloBud Posted June 19, 2009 Share Posted June 19, 2009 Maybe that was it. I don't mind if you only catch the front or back edge and it rolls off, but i remember the tournament where literally 90% of the balls that hit the green were rolling off, and it got ridiculous. To me, a major championship (like the US Open) should ideally be set up where the winner should be a few shots under par. That was Shinnecock where they were having the problems with the greens. Take it from someone who has played Pinehurst #2 a couple of times. The ball will stay on the green if you play the right shot. Miss and it might roll back or to the right / left depending on the contour. Greens are like inverted bowls. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kegtapr Posted June 19, 2009 Share Posted June 19, 2009 I plan my first vacation around the US Open every year. Couldn't get "just in case Monday" off this year though... Pulling hard for Phil like a lot of people. Would be happy with Rocco too. Duval is the story at the moment, but I think he drops off the leaderboard after round 2. I enjoy watching Tiger's march to the greatest of all time, but there are too many other good stories this year to want him to win. Sounds like another wash out tomorrow, hopefully they get a lot of golf in though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kegtapr Posted June 19, 2009 Share Posted June 19, 2009 Maybe that was it. I don't mind if you only catch the front or back edge and it rolls off, but i remember the tournament where literally 90% of the balls that hit the green were rolling off, and it got ridiculous. To me, a major championship (like the US Open) should ideally be set up where the winner should be a few shots under par. I've never been a fan of when players call a course unfair as they all play the same course, but Shinnecock did border on ridiculous. It's not likely to happen anymore as Mike Davis (he's the USGA guy setting up to courses now) has a different philosophy that's really worked the last couple of years. In my mind, the US Open winner should be at -1. It should take great shots to get birdies and you should be punished severly for bad ones. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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