Olympia Fields influence on this years US Open

[Dr. Block]

Does the USGA have the stones to ignore the possible criticism and set the course up to be an absolute monster whether the wind blows or it doesn't?

Edited August 31, 2020 by Dr. Block

[3whacker]

knowing how the USGA comes in and takes control of a course months in advance, they already have a plan for Winged Foot, they just need Mother Nature to do her part and they will determine what gets cut and what doesnt. The only adjustment they had to make is what the prevailing wind is in Sept as opposed to June and the daytime and night time temperatures

[widow-maker]

Olympia Fields will have no influence on the US Open.  Winged Foot has held the Open a number of times and they know good and well what to expect.  Whatever happens, the USGA will be well aware of the consequences of setting a course up to be as difficult as it can be.  They want it on the edge and they live with it if it teeters over... like Shinnecock. 

[DavePelz4]

Olympia Fields was difficult, but fair and the USGA would do well to strive for that goal. 

[Dr. Block]

4 minutes ago, widow-maker said:

Olympia Fields will have no influence on the US Open.  Winged Foot has held the Open a number of times and they know good and well what to expect.  Whatever happens, the USGA will be well aware of the consequences of setting a course up to be as difficult as it can be.  They want it on the edge and they live with it if it teeters over... like Shinnecock. 

no influence?  I don't know about that.  If I'm in the chair at the USGA, I'm now making it a priority not to be outdone by a Fed ex cup event.  Maybe I'm just old school, but I think Olympia just showed the golfing world that you don't have to rely on the uncontrollable variable that is wind (Shinnecock) to give the course its propers. 

 

 

[Shak-]

Think it’s important to bear in mind that Olympia Fields had weather that was really conducive to high scoring. The wind was brutal the first three days and that really drove up scoring. The first two days in particular had the double whammy of strong wind and, quite importantly, there was no morning wave of players. Nobody got to play the course before it had dried out significantly whereas at a normal event you’ll get a crack at the course at least once with some overnight moisture on it and lighter wind. Saturday the likes of Rahm got to go out earlier and he was one of a few that took advantage. His 66 was I believe better than anything we saw on the first two days.
 

And then you saw on Sunday what happened when the wind was much gentler, 33 of the 69 players in the field shot in the 60s. Had that been the first round the leaderboard would have looked like a pretty standard end of day one affair on a tour event with a par 70.

 

Rahm -6

Finau -5

Kokrak -4

Scheffler -4

Dahmen -4

Wolff -3

DJ -3

Fitzpatrick -3

Niemann -3

 

Then a bunch of guys on -2. It’s not exactly tearing the course up but the scoring was good out there. Four days of benign wind and the winning score would quite possibly have been into double digits under par IMO. 
 

I much prefer to see events like the one we saw last weekend. For me my favourite type of major is those US Opens where the course is playing brutal but fair and the winning score is 1 or 2 shots either side of par.

 

But is that possible these days? With modern equipment and as good as these players are?

 

I’d argue yes but only if the weather cooperates. No heavy rain leading up to or during the event, allowing the greens to be rock hard and fast. You also need enough wind to at least factor into how a player hits his shot. If it’s soft and/or calm out there it’s just not possible to set up a course fairly that keeps the winning score from being well under par IMO.

 

 

 

[Soloman1]

Let's put it the shoe on the other foot for a change.

I wish they'd set it up at 6,500 yards, roll the fairways, pins at the flat spot of the greens and cut the rough to only 5/8". Yeehaw!

[smashdn]

The best they can do is make the course hard, but not get it to a point that too much wind makes it unplayable.  That might mean that if the weather is benign there are many rounds under par.  2-4 under par is stomachable if the weather dictates it.  

 

If the wind picks up the 2-4 under may easily become 2-4 over.

 

Dry, running fairways, deep 4-5" rough, hard decently fast greens (stimp 12 if you need a number) to allow them to put holes in locations with slope and not be unfair.  That would be my recipe.  Add in mowing patterns that assist balls to run into bunkers and not a ring of rough to prevent balls from going in and I think you have about as good a recipe as you can without running the risk of the course getting out of hand if the wind kicks up.  As the week goes on you can gauge whether you need to add moisture or if you can continue to dry it out as the wind dictates.

[Dr. Block]

3 hours ago, Shak- said:

Think it’s important to bear in mind that Olympia Fields had weather that was really conducive to high scoring. The wind was brutal the first three days and that really drove up scoring. The first two days in particular had the double whammy of strong wind and, quite importantly, there was no morning wave of players. Nobody got to play the course before it had dried out significantly whereas at a normal event you’ll get a crack at the course at least once with some overnight moisture on it and lighter wind. Saturday the likes of Rahm got to go out earlier and he was one of a few that took advantage. His 66 was I believe better than anything we saw on the first two days.
 

And then you saw on Sunday what happened when the wind was much gentler, 33 of the 69 players in the field shot in the 60s. Had that been the first round the leaderboard would have looked like a pretty standard end of day one affair on a tour event with a par 70.

 

Rahm -6

Finau -5

Kokrak -4

Scheffler -4

Dahmen -4

Wolff -3

DJ -3

Fitzpatrick -3

Niemann -3

 

Then a bunch of guys on -2. It’s not exactly tearing the course up but the scoring was good out there. Four days of benign wind and the winning score would quite possibly have been into double digits under par IMO. 
 

I much prefer to see events like the one we saw last weekend. For me my favourite type of major is those US Opens where the course is playing brutal but fair and the winning score is 1 or 2 shots either side of par.

 

But is that possible these days? With modern equipment and as good as these players are?

 

I’d argue yes but only if the weather cooperates. No heavy rain leading up to or during the event, allowing the greens to be rock hard and fast. You also need enough wind to at least factor into how a player hits his shot. If it’s soft and/or calm out there it’s just not possible to set up a course fairly that keeps the winning score from being well under par IMO.

 

 

 

 

I live about 20 miles from Olympia and I golfed in the afternoon after work on each of the first two days of the tournament.  The wind was 10-15 mph and variable, It was far from brutal.  It was brutally hot though. 

 

Love the rest of your post though - totally agree.   

Edited September 1, 2020 by Dr. Block

[Shak-]

Brutal might have been a bit OTT but it was definitely more of an issue for them than most weeks on the tour. Or maybe it just seemed that way because of how firm and dried our the greens were?

[Dr. Block]

13 minutes ago, Shak- said:

Brutal might have been a bit OTT but it was definitely more of an issue for them than most weeks on the tour. Or maybe it just seemed that way because of how firm and dried our the greens were?

I would say that coupling it with the extreme heat of the first two days added to the firmness.  But a variable 10-15 mph wind doesn't bother those guys too much.  They are good at timing their shots to when it lays down.

 

You nailed it in the last sentence of your first post.  It will all come down to the weather in NY leading up to the event.  If they are in a drought, then we might have an old school US Open.  If it's been raining, they will probably shoot 10-12 under or better.  

Edited September 1, 2020 by Dr. Block

[farmer]

Wind in Mamaronack in Sept avgs between 5-10 mph.  Might rain, though, that's 4+ inches.

[nitram]

Rain makes the rough grow.

[QuigleyDU]

Winged Foot needs no assistance..