Ron Kroichick: Golf needs par-5s as closing holes
This week’s foursome of news and nuggets:
Par-5s reign: We hereby propose a rule for all PGA Tour and LPGA events, requiring a reachable, par-5 finishing hole. Call it the Lydia Ko clause.
Ko’s clutch 3-wood shot set up Sunday’s playoff eagle and vaulted her to victory in the LPGA Mediheal Championship at Lake Merced. The ball soared majestically over a towering cypress tree, took a friendly bounce onto the green and dramatically threatened to roll into the hole.
This scintillating finish offered a vivid reminder: Too many good courses end with ordinary par-4s. Augusta National, for instance, features so many cool, memorable holes — but No. 18, an uninspiring uphill par-4, isn’t one of them.
Just imagine if No. 15, a par-5, were the final hole of the Masters, giving players a chance to make eagle. (They also could make 13, if they plopped several shots into the pond, Sergio Garcia-like.) That would add untold excitement.
At any rate, tournament director Andy Bush deserves props for flipping Lake Merced’s front nine and back nine for the LPGA event. That set the stage for Ko, and she delivered.
Byrnes races to record: Leave it to former A’s outfielder Eric Byrnes, resident crazy man/triathlete/ultra-runner, to take aim on the Guinness Book of World Records.
Byrnes set an apparent world record by completing 245 holes in a 12-hour span (without a cart) April 21 at Napa Golf Course at Kennedy Park. This happened in the Napa Valley Speed Golf Challenge, a charity event benefiting nontoxic lymphoma treatment research.
The outing intrigued Byrnes, in part, because he had a friend who died of lymphoma at age 18. He likes golf, and he obviously likes pushing his body, so off he went with only an 8-iron in hand.
Byrnes played most shots polo-style, hitting the ball onehanded on the run; he guessed he took about seven shots per hole, or 126 per round. He ran an estimated 65½ miles, covering the 6,081-yard course 13 times (plus 11 extra holes).
It was 82 degrees in Napa that day, so the midafternoon tested Byrnes more than his last few trips around the course.
“The toughest part was fighting through the heat,” Byrnes said. “It cooled down a bit as it got later, so I was able to speed up.”
Byrnes applied to the Guinness Book of World Records — the current record is 237 holes, set last year by Brad Luiten of New Zealand — and is awaiting an official review.
NCAAs at Harding: Many of the nation’s top men’s college golfers took their shot at Harding Park in late March. Now the women get their turn.
Stanford will host an NCAA regional at Harding starting Monday. Eighteen teams are in the field, and the low six (over 54 holes) will advance to the NCAA championships, May 18-23, in Stillwater, Okla.
The regional includes five of the nation’s top 17 teams, according to Golfstat: UCLA at No. 1, Stanford (5), South Carolina (9), Kent State (16) and Oklahoma State (17). Cal also is in the field.
Top players at Harding include UCLA junior Lilia Vu, ranked No. 1 in the country; Stanford sophomore Andrea Lee (4); UCLA freshman Patty Tavatanakit (5); and South Carolina senior Ainhoa Olarra (11).
On the men’s side, Cal, Stanford, USF, St. Mary’s and Santa Clara all were selected for NCAA regionals May 14-16. Also, Cal’s Collin Morikawa was named Thursday as one of three finalists for the Ben Hogan Award, recognizing the nation’s top player.
U.S. Amateur on horizon: Pebble Beach remains a powerful lure.
The 118th U.S. Amateur comes to Pebble this summer, and it’s no surprise to learn USGA officials expect to receive a record number of entries. They’re already at more than 4,000, with a June 27 deadline. The record is 7,920, set when the Amateur was last held at Pebble Beach (1999).
Qualifying begins July 2. The Amateur runs Aug. 13-19, with stroke play at Pebble Beach and Spyglass Hill and match play at Pebble.
The field of 312 players on Monday will shrink to four by the weekend. Those semifinal matches carry extra gravity, because both finalists receive an exemption into next year’s U.S. Open at Pebble Beach.
USGA officials plan to display the Open trophy on the No. 1 tee Saturday, just to remind the semifinalists what’s at stake.
“I see the pressure in some of the players’ faces — it’s really cool,” U.S. Amateur director Robbie Zalzneck said. “We think it’s part of the mental challenge.”