EVEN BEST BE WARNED
FedEx playoffs begin with notorious L.I. course
THE PGA Tour is back on Long Island this week, with The Barclays returning to ever-challenging Bethpage Black for the first time since 2012.
The tournament — held at the treacherous site of the U.S. Open in 2002 and 2009 — boasts a star-studded field and kicks off the FedEx Cup playoffs for the 10th consecutive season.
And as Justin Rose, fresh off winning the gold medal in Rio for Great Britain, noted of the public course: “It’s got that reputation, ‘beware or warning,’ or whatever that famous sign says.”
Indeed, the Black course infamously features an ominous sign at the first tee — much like a double black-diamond trail in skiing — describing the par-71 track as “an extremely difficult course… which we recommend for highly skilled golfers.”
To that end, Jim Furyk offered a quick reply of “no” when asked by a reporter earlier this week whether anyone would challenge the single-round PGA tour record of 58 he posted at the Travelers Championship at TPC River Highlands three weeks ago in Connecticut.
“(The sign) should say: ‘It’s a risk, even for really good players,’” added two-time major winner Jordan Spieth, who has yet to play Bethpage Black in tournament play. “The course I’ve played the last two days is up there with the hardest probably top five courses I’ve ever played in my life, and it’s Tuesday and Wednesday of this week and it’s soft.
“Oakmont is obviously challenging, any time we play a U.S. Open, it’s tough. But as far as an everyday type golf course, obviously they grow the rough up here more than usual. It’s up there with the top couple. It’s good. It’s a fair test, though … I think it’s great. You have to hit a variety of shots into the greens, different trajectories. It’s the all-around golfers’ golf course.”
Sergio Garcia and reigning Masters champion Danny Willett are among those in the top 125 in the FedEx standings not here this week, and Tiger Woods obviously remains notably absent as he recovers from back surgery.
But the top five players in FedEx points this year — led by three-time 2016 winner Jason Day, U.S. Open champ Dustin Johnson, Adam Scott, Russell Knox and Spieth – as well as Phil Mickelson, Rory McIlroy and British Open winner Henrik Stenson highlight the field.
“Bethpage is a course I think fits my game pretty well. It’s a tough track,” said Stenson, who also won the silver medal at the Olympics in Brazil for Sweden. “It’s not just Bethpage in particular, but any course where you get good advantage of hitting a lot of fairways and greens, it should suit me pretty good.”
The top 125 players from the PGA Tour season, through last week’s Wyndham Championship, are eligible to play in the FedEx Cup playoffs, which feature a progressive cut through three events to determine the final 30 players to qualify for the Tour Championship at East Lake Golf Club in Atlanta in late September, with the winner taking home $10 million. The Barclays field will be whittled down to 100 players and ties for the Deutsche Bank Championship and then to 70 players and ties for the BMW Championship.
“Arguably the most important tournament of the year is here. … If you can have a great tournament this week, you can go all the way to East Lake,” said Knox, who won the Travelers earlier this month. “I think there’s a reason why massive tournaments, majors, the Barclays, keep coming back to a venue like this. It shows how good (Bethpage) is.
“I’m 100% sure it’s going to be an amazing test and it’s going to be a tremendous course.”