Undulating greens that rival famed Augusta National Golf Club will provide a test of nerves for European and United States golfers trying to tame a ”Monster” here at the Ryder Cup.
Oakland Hills Country Club, a 11 323-metre Donald Ross-designed course opened in 1918, has hosted six US Opens, including the 1951 event where winner Ben Hogan said, ”I’m glad I brought this course, this monster, to its knees.”
Solving the sloping greens of Oakland Hills will be a major factor in the biennial team matches that begin here on Friday, a major reason why US captain Hal Sutton built his squad around putting prowness.
”I think we’ve got the greatest putting team that the United States has ever assembled,” Sutton said. ”All 12 of them are great putters. They wouldn’t be here if they weren’t.”
”All of my guys can putt too,” countered European captain Bernhard Langer, who noted that neither team often sees putting surfaces like these.
”The only place that comes to mind is Augusta. The greens are very severe. Every single green is very tough and very difficult,” he said.
”You’ve got to be straight off the tee. You have to hit precise irons and the greens are some of the most severe you can find anywhere in the world.”
Masters champion Phil Mickelson, who solved Augusta National’s greens in April for his first major title, sees the course as perfect for match-play.
”There are a number of great match holes because the penalty for a poor drive or one mis-strike is very severe. Each shot there is a critical-ness to it because it’s not wide open,” he said.
”With the rough being up, the greens being so severe, the front of the greens as guarded as they are, it’s very difficult to get the ball on the green from out of the rough. You’re fighting for par if you miss a fairway.
”We’re going to see a lot of 4- and 8-footers for halves because it’s so difficult to lag-putt it close.”
Stewart Cink, the US PGA Tour’s top-ranked putter, warned that the greens can be deceptive.
”We knew it was going to be difficult and it should be great for testing the nerves of these Ryder Cup players,” Cink said.
”Being in the fairway will be a premium because of accuracy, control into the greens.
”The one thing I noticed about the greens is there is a lot of break on them. As pure as the grass is, there’s more break than you think there’s going to be.
”A really strong attribute for players is going to be playing the long putts — the 30, 40-footers that have six feet of break in them, getting them nestled down close to the hole and avoid three putts. That’s going to be really big.”
England’s Lee Westwood laughed that even legendary designer Ross
would be fired if he tried to submit this design in the 21st
Century.
”If I was to design a course now and put greens like this I think I would be absolutely ridiculed and probably not get another design job ever,” Westwood said.
”They are just greens you have never seen before, massive slopes with small levels on the side of them. They are very unique.”
Ireland’s Padraig Harrington said that while the course will frustrate both teams, it offers a fair set-up.
”There’s no trickery out there,” he said. ”The course is exactly as you would expect to find, a US Open-style course. It will be a fair test, though it will be difficult.” – Sapa-AFP