THE NEARLY ACCURATE ARE PUNISHED, THE VERY WILD GET BETTER LIES
ROUGH JUST TOO THICK AT TORREY PINES: TIGER MIGHT NOT GO BACK
FROM THE GOLF DIGEST WEBSITE
By GEOFF SHACKELFORD
SAN
DIEGO -- The winter chill has avoided Southern California but the
high-rough setup at Torrey Pines may put a damper on the Farmers
Insurance Open going forward.
Tiger Woods
missed the Saturday cut, prompted by the high number of players who made
it to the weekend. Phil Mickelson's back locked-up hitting out of the
thick stuff, leading to his withdrawal. Worst of all, the first network
Saturday telecast of 2014 was a total bore. (Oh, and it took them 5
hours and 30 minutes for the leaders to finish 18 holes on a windless,
70-degree day.)
I've
been walking the course all week and while it's in tremendous condition
and some key landing areas were wisely widened by the US PGA Tour rules
staff, the rough is just silly in places.
It's one thing when it's
chip-out rough throughout and the misery is widespread. But the worst
stuff seems to be just off the fairways and just off the greens.
The
result? The nearly accurate are punished, while the wild get by. Miss
it 10 yards off line and you get a lie, miss it 10 feet and you are
buried in the deep rye grass rough that was installed this year. They
closed Torrey Pines down for an overseed, all to do this to a field just
trying to get the year off on a solid note?
New
bunker sand was also brought in and the bunkers rebuilt to reduce
plugged lies, but the opposite has occurred. Plus, the raking is
surprisingly close to a furrowed look. On a public course, in January
when a big audience wants to see everyone having a good time, making
birdies and showing off the winter work.
The
merits of these forms of trickery have long been debated and I know
many golfers find it comforting to see great golfers struggle. Me? I
find it cynical, depressing and the last thing we want to see in January
at a place as beautiful and proven as Torrey Pines. Judging by the lack
of roars from a typically inspired San Diego crowd that paid good money
to have a good time, the rough has dampened the mood.
But
of more concern should be what the rough does for future Tiger Woods
and Phil Mickelson appearances here. Neither man needs to begin their
year grooving bad habits or tweaking nagging injuries because someone
got a deal on ryegrass seed.
Mickelson plans to redesign the North
Course and lives nearby, so he's probably always going to tee it up in
the Farmers.
Woods, on the other hand, missed the Sunday cut in ugly
fashion, and it wouldn't surprise me if we don't see him here again as
long as officials insist on tall, thick, confining and pointless hay
lining the holes.
Labels: US PGA TOUR
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