Soggy setup awaits Women’s Open
Inbee Park’s 12th U.S. Women’s Open already stands out for a gloomy reason: the rain-soaked course at Shoal Creek.
The picturesque course in suburban Birmingham, Alabama, had been drenched by nearly five inches of rain this week as of Wednesday afternoon, with the effects of Subtropical Storm Alberto adding onto earlier rains.
“This is probably the wettest conditions I have ever seen in a U.S. Women’s Open,” said Park, a Korean who won in 2008 and 2013. “We just don’t know what’s going to happen.
“Coming into the U.S. Women’s Open, I always try to play the ball with the mud or try to play with like a wet ground condition because we’ve never played lift, clean and place. We just play from wherever it is and however the condition is.”
Practice rounds were canceled Tuesday and the course closed, other than some late-afternoon trips to the driving range. More rain followed overnight and into Wednesday on the eve of the major championship, when the course finally reopened by early afternoon in time for some of the 156 players to get in practice.
The field will be cut to the low 60 scorers and ties after two
rounds.
John Bodenhamer, USGA’s senior managing director, said officials didn’t plan to use lift, clean and place for the first time in one of the organization’s championships.
The LPGA Tour’s Kingsmill Championship two weeks ago was shortened to 54 holes because of rain. The field, which includes 10 past Open champions, arrived in Alabama hoping to avoid a similar fate.
PGA TOUR RETURNING TO MICHIGAN » Ten years after leaving Michigan, the PGA Tour is bringing a new tournament to Detroit. Detroit-based Quicken Loans has signed an agreement to host a PGA Tour event in the Motor City starting next summer. Still to be determined is the name of the tournament and when it will be played.
ROUGH CHOICES AT U.S. OPEN » One big difference at Shinnecock Hills (Southampton, New York) for this year’s U.S. Open is the rough around most of the greens. There isn’t any. Trying to respect the design of William Flynn, the USGA this year has cut the grass surrounding the greens to create situations where a shot missing the green will run down a slope some 15 yards or more away from the putting surface.
Jason Dufner He said he prefers to have up to 5 inches of rough around greens that are firm and fast. Then he was asked what he doesn’t like about runoffs.
“Too many options,” he said. “I get confused. I don’t know which one to pick.”
OKLAHOMA STATE WINS NCAA TITLE » Host Oklahoma State blasted Alabama to win the NCAA men’s championship on its home course of Karsten Creek Club in Stillwater. Vitkor Hovland, Zach Bouchou and Matthew Wolff delivered wins in the first three matches. The final score was 3-2 because the other two matches ended where they were.