Happy New Year – PGA Tour 2017
I hope everyone had a great holidays and New Year. I know I am looking forward to 2017, not only from a professional standpoint, but I’m looking forward to the new PGA Tour season as well. While much of the news will be on Tigers return, a strong group of the world’s top golfers will make for an exciting year.
I am particularly excited about the start of the 2017 calendar season with this week’s SBS Tournament of Champions. I always look forward to watching the tournament each night when it is cold and snowy outside. This year I have added incentive as I was able to play the Plantation Course last winter while in Maui. I’ve come across with a deeper appreciation of the golf course and it has turned into one of the top courses I have played.
Coore and Crenshaw did a terrific job of routing this golf course, utilizing exactly what the land gave them. You have downhill and uphill golf shots, carries over deep ravines, and the use of side hill slopes to shape the holes. It plays to a par 73 and offers seven holes that are longer than 500 yards. Combine that with the constant trade winds and you have a course that requires some thinking.
As a designer I learned a lot from playing the course. The biggest impression I took away is the use of the land in the ground game around the green complexes. I am no longer taking for granted that you have to have a green site always slope back to the golfer. When you watch the tournament this year pay extra attention to how the golfers play a shot off the slopes and allow the ground to funnel the ball towards the pin. This is especially evident on the final two holes where the greens run from front to back.
Major Predictions
With the start of the new season I’d like to make my predictions for the Major Championships. Last year was a tough one to pick as you had four first time winners. This year I think we will have four past major winners win each tournament.
The Masters – I was first going to look at either Jason Day or Bubba Watson with challenging for the Green Jacket. Now after the announcement that Jason is switching club manufacturers and Bubba is with a new golf ball, I’m going with Rory McIlroy to win the jacket and capture the career Grand Slam.
The US Open – This year’s tournament is at a new venue, Erin Hills in SE Wisconsin. I had a chance to play there last summer and this course is long and tough. I’ll talk more about it as we get closer to the tournament. The green surrounds are outstanding and I think the winner will be someone with a great short game. My prediction is that Phil Mickelson will finally capture his National Championship and join Rory and others with the career Grand Slam.
The Open Championship – This year the tournament returns to Royal Birkdale in western England. I’m looking at an Englishman to capture the Claret Jug and that will be Gold Medalist Justin Rose.
PGA Championship – The tournament is at Quail Hollow in Charlotte this year and this course has hosted PGA event each year with the Wells Fargo Championship. McIlroy has won twice there and finished second once. I’m looking for him to win that one for a double major 2017.
There’s my predictions and I’m looking forward to see how these turn out. I’ll keep following up with the tour’s courses and the happenings out there. I’m sure it will be exciting and the Tiger watch will start with his first tournament. In the meantime, here’s hoping for good weather leading into spring.