Go Time

It's not your grandfather's U.S. Open...on that we can all agree.  But can anyone remember a golf event with so many unknowns?

First I'll send you to this Shack post with multiple links to yesterdays preview Golf Channel round table featuring his own self, Jaime Diaz and John Feinstein moderated by Steve Sands.  Lots of good discussion, though of course my favorite moment is when Jaime tells Feinstein that he'd spoken enough already.  I like Feinstien, but he can be a bit of a microphone bully, and with a bully you have to punch back twice as hard...

The big subject on everyone's mind is the condition of the course, especially with the need to get 156 players around the course.  Of course it helps having no rain in the forecast and it being light until 10:30, but the over/under for the length of rounds is in the 5 1/2 hours range...Let's start with the guy in the crosshairs, USGA Grand Poobah Mike Davis:

USGA Executive Director Mike Davis said on Fox Sports 1’s U.S. Open preview show

Wednesday morning that “we’ve got it [Chambers Bay) right where we want it, which is wonderful.”

Fox analyst Greg Norman interviewed Davis, who also ventured a prediction on the winning score. “I would guess, just a guess, maybe a few better than par,,” he said. “But if it got windy and crusty on us par’s always a good score.”

And he added this:

“On the eve of the championship the golf course is superb,” he said. “It’s nice and firm and fast. And really, at this point, thankfully, we’re getting blessed with this great weather, it’s really down to managing the firmness. It’s a water management thing. So we’re looking at moisture levels in greens. We’re looking at the firmness of greens. And we’re also looking at what winds might be predicted for tomorrow. So we’ve got it really right where we want it, which is wonderful.”

OK, then it's really all on you, Mike.  Shack channels his inner Dave Hill with this header:

Chambers Bay: Wait for it, the first to say they ruined a good gravel pit

 He gives us three things to look for to determine if it's gotten goofy, the middle oh which is player grumbling...Let's ignore the delicate flowers that play our game, but the other two are worthy warnings:

— Water crews rushing to extinguish any green, especially the first, seventh, ninth, 12th or 16th greens. Anytime a light watering of surfaces is required, it’s not a good sign. But with green speeds actually slower than when Chambers hosted the 2010 U.S. Amateur (where things got away from the setup committee), you are more likely to see the hose-and-water teams called on to put out a cigarette-infused brush fire. 

— More than two groups on a tee. The USGA time par has been set at four hours, 45 minutes. I’ll pause here to let you stop giggling. That’s because all weekday major championship rounds are pushing 5 1/2 hours these days, and that’s on properties much flatter than the eight-mile hiking trail that is Chambers Bay. If you see more than two groups on a tee, that’s a hint one of the USGA’s many course setup twists and turns is a bit too cerebral for this field.

That first is an homage to Shinnecock c. 2014, but I included it because he identifies the greens at risk.

That first Shack link above also included a series of interesting tweets from Brad Fritsch.  The most important of those is that the greens don't look great, but that they're rolling quite fine.  here's an explanation of that from Shane Ryan:

11. The greens "look splotchy" due to the two types of grass, but Davis is happy with the smoothness of the roll, and less concerned about appearance. Brad Fritsch, a Canadian player, actually expressed similar sentiments on Twitter yesterday. Most other U.S. Open courses use poa annua and bentgrass, which are the same color, but fescue and bent are different, hence the mottled appearance. 

12. It's hard to distinguish between the greens and the fairway for the simple fact that both are predominantly fine fescue grass.

Don't know if you've seen it in the previews, but they've actually been painting little white dots for the outlines of the greens.  This is nothing out of the ordinary for a links, though I think the most seamless transition from fairways to greens I've ever experienced was at Old Macdonald at Bandon Dunes.

One story that deserves more scrutiny is the spectator experience....Sam Weinman with the skinny:

UNIVERSITY PLACE, Wash. -- Let's be clear that of the people to be worried about

heading into the 115th U.S. Open, the media should probably rank at the bottom. A close second might be the people who have scored tickets to be here.

Still, it's fair to say that for those of us on site at this arresting venue, actually seeing golf shots will be a challenge.

"There are limited sight lines so you're not going to maybe see every shot," said Danny Sink, the U.S. Open's Championship Director who has been on site at Chambers Bay for more than two years. "Allowing spectators where it's not safe, we're just not going to do it."

In fairness, Sink and his team have countered the course's viewing limitations by constructing 18,000 grandstand seats -- what he says are "some of the best spectating viewing areas we've ever had." But that's contingent on you planting yourself down in one place as opposed to actually trying to follow a group. But if you've got your heart set on seeing, say, Matt Kuchar from 1 to 18, it gets tough.

Shack had this on the subject:

the fan experience here, which is getting rave reviews until one tries to see golf. This is huge on a number of levels, starting with the prospects of a return to Chambers Bay but also in potentially impacting how the golf is perceived. We may seem some birdies without roars on holes where there should be people. The 8th hole is going to be played in complete solitude, which may be best as no one needs to see what happens up there.

C'mon, Geoff, tell us what you really think about the 8th hole.  But like Whistling Straits, this is just a brutal walk for the players, and they walk down the short stuff...those spectacular dunes will look great on your UHD TV, but if we don't have a couple of broken ankles by Sunday night I'll be surprised...

Regular readers know that I love links golf more than life itself.... but for those that have denied themselves the pleasure, they know from watching Open Championships about the wind and the pot bunker.  What a human, especially a human that's only experienced parkland golf, can't understand is the effect of the firm turf...how it changes play with every club in the bag.

So do watch University of Georgia player Lee McCoy dribbling his golf ball down a fairway...as the ladies like to say, it's different out here.

The harsh criticism of Chambers Bay from players has died down, as there's no point in advertising that you've made a Friday afternoon airline reservation.  But one player that's not holding his fire is Canadian Graham DeLaet who tweeted this:

Graham DeLaetVerified account‏@GrahamDeLaet

My theory is Mike Davis has never broke 85 in his life, and doesn't want to see pros do it either. #RBCGolf4Kids

Now Graham is a player, but is not in the field this week.  And, for the record, Mike's index is 3.5, so he's broken 85 with some frequency...

Before we finish our flyovers, Alex Myers thinks you can make some money by betting Tiger this week.  Not to win, of course, but how about these prop bets:

But don't worry, there are plenty of other Tiger prop bets that you might find more interesting if you're looking for some action. For instance, there's actually a bet where Woods is a favorite -- hitting the first fairway. Woods is -120 (risk $120 to win $100) to hit the first fairway on Thursday. Considering the generous landing areas Chambers Bay features off the tee, this doesn't seem like a bad bet.

Hmmmm...Tiger is going off No. 1 today which will play as a +/- 500 yard Par-4.  Since he'll have to hit driver, I'm gonna guess that he doesn't sniff that fairway...

What about Woods finishing in the top 20? Westgate is offering 3-to-1 odds on that. That sounds pretty good considering Woods finished T-17 at the Masters. Until you look at Woods' results and realize that's his only top-20 finish since 2013. 

OK then, what about Woods just making the cut? Westgate lists Woods at +120 (risk $100 to win $120). In other words, Tiger Woods, a man who you used to have to bet straight up against the rest of the field, is a slight underdog just to make it to the weekend. We repeat: Tiger Woods, who used to be expected to win every time he teed it up, isn't expected to even play four rounds at a golf tournament anymore.

Remember folks, bet with your head, not over it.

OK, let's knock off the last of our flyovers.  The 16th is the Chambers Bay version of Prestwick's first hole that has a rail line running along it, also on the right.  We could see this play as a reachable four-par depending upon wind direction, and Shack also warns that the green slopes away from the player.

No. 17 is another Par-3 with alternative tee options that change the look and line of the hole:

I'll add this photo from Shack of the hole:

Not too shabby, eh?

No. 18 will play as a Par-5 today, and Gil and Holly start at the basement...Shack had this to say about the hole and it's most recent addition:

The finisher signals the arrival of the much anticipated U.S. Open and few holes are more intriguing than the 18th. While I'm not as fascinated by the alternating par of the 1st and 18th depending on wind or the committee's mood, what does interest is the decision for Sunday's final round. Will a reachable par-5 encourage going for the green in two, or will we see a long, dreary, hard-to-par two-shotter?

Either way, this nice lay-of-the-land hole is marred only but poorly constructed "basement" bunker added for the U.S. Open and hopefully filled in soon. The strategic concept of the bunker is sound, the construction execution lacking because it's so different looking than any other hazard on the course. Not only is the look jarring, it reminds the golfer that this is not a natural bunker, but instead something added later to penalize.

I'd focus you on the green, which if the word "goofy" is to be used will likely be in this context:

We're an hour from balls in the sir.  Enjoy!