POULTER SLAMS US PGA TOUR FOR COURSE SET-UP

FROM THE DAILY TELEGRAPH WEBSITE

By JAMES CORRIGAN

Ian Poulter finished down the pack at The Barclays on Sunday and was confident of two things - a Ryder Cup wild card selection and a fine.
One is as predictable as the other. Poulter has been quoted at the ridiculously short-odds of 1-500 to be named as one of José Maria Olazábal’s two captain's picks for Medinah on Monday. And if the golfing authorities ever publicised who they sanction, it would be just as unprofitable to back Poulter being punished for his remarks concerning the Long Island course.

First came the tweet, following his third-round 76. “The worst course set-up I have ever played in 13 years on tour. They have ruined what is a great course, greens like concrete stupid pins.” 
Then, with the notebooks in from of him, Poulter was even more outspoken.

“I’ve got to tell you, they f****d up,” he said. “Royally f****d up. Look at how many guys have had a bad day, and there’s a lot of guys that had a bad day.

“You know, the eight, especially, is the worst I’ve ever seen on Tour. Eight was worse than Shinnecock. How about that for a statement? They have lost it.” 
LESSON LEARNED

He was referring to the infamous 2004 US Open at nearby Shinnecock Hills, when a few of the greens made glass seem receptive. The PGA Tour had clearly learned the lesson of Saturday and turned on the hoses.

The result, said Poulter, was “a much fairer test of golf”. The 36 year-old stuck by his comments after a 69 dragged him back to level par, but still outside the top 30.
“All we want as players is to be rewarded for good shots,” he said. “On those greens we weren’t being rewarded. I spoke to some of the officials and they told me they were expecting cloud cover. There wasn’t any. What more can I say?”
 As Poulter was ready to travel to his next assignment — a company day at The Liberty course in New Jersey, on the way to which he will receive a call from the Olazábal — Sergio García was teeing off with a two-shot lead over Nick Watney, trying to win for the second successive week.
The Spaniard is the talk of the range again, following a resurgence which has been marked by his abandonment of a professional caddie. Last week at the Wyndham Championship he used a bagman from a local club, while here at Bethpage he called up a friend, Wayne Richardson, who usually walks the course as a ball-spotter for a US network.
Justin Rose believes that this – plus the motivation to qualify for the Ryder Cup, of course — has helped García rediscover his love for the game. “It has made him take the responsibility and, if you like, go back to playing like he did as a kid,” said Rose after his own 68 took him to two-over.
“It’s great to see him enjoying himself on the course again. From a Europe perspective it is a big, big boost.” 
EDITOR: But Sergio did not win .... scroll down for the final totals and last-day summary from The Barclays.