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PGA Golf | The US Open

The Pinehurst Course

Pinehurst Ready For 2005 U.S. Open

Few Changes Made To Famed No. 2 Course From '99 Championship
That's the mind-set of Paul Jett, superintendent of Pinehurst No. 2, as the 2005 U.S. Open draws closer. After a mild winter that caused little damage Jett and staff, in preparation for the June 16-19 championship, have set their attention on a list of priorities as the turf breaks dormancy. The course will close May 30 and re-open to its patrons June 23.
"The rough is probably number one because the Open happens so early in our growing season," said Jett, superintendent at the course since 1995. He listed growing the green surrounds next. Then the focus will turn to the fabled Donald Ross inverted-saucer greens, making sure they measure 11½ feet on the Stimpmeter. Currently they are 10.
This year's championship will feature 3-inch rough, about the same as in 1999. The rough might be a bit higher in a few spots.

It had been determined a week before the '99 championship that 4 inches might have been a bit too penal, thereby forcing Jett and his team to snip it in the 3-inch range. Players, perplexed at the time, were using wedges to knock their ball out into the fairway. USGA executive director David Fay said, "Three inches of Bermuda … will almost get that half-shot penalty," adding that scaling back the rough in comparison to '99 will still be enough of a factor to affect players' control of the ball.
Knowing the challenge that lay ahead, Jett had 400 more sprinkler heads installed near the rough areas. Jett relied on a double-row irrigation system down the fairways in 1999, making it difficult to water rough areas. That said, Jett is of the belief that No. 2 is intended to be a short-game test in which most of the scoring opportunities will occur 50 yards and in. The greens have the classic Ross stamp – undulating, contoured and quick. So fast that it's not a stretch to say that putting on some of them could be likened to putting on a coffee table. "The greens," said Fay. "That's the last line of defense on No. 2."

What else has changed since 1999? The course will have several new surprises. For starters the course will play 7,214 yards, 92 yards longer than in 1999, and will subsequently tie the Black Course at Bethpage State Park (2002) as the longest Open in history. Seven new tees have been built on holes two, four, seven, nine, 11, 12 and 14. For those who are wayward off the tee, expect to see tighter fairways. In 1999 fairways measured between 28-32 yards wide. Most of the fairways for 2005 have been narrowed to 24-26 yards. All in all, Jett is confident that despite the minor modifications, players who were here in '99 won't notice much difference. "I think the players will find exactly the same golf course as the one they left in '99," he said. In light of last year's controversy at Shinnecock Hills during the final round, Fay spoke in favor of the U.S. Open Championship philosophy that was introduced on Media Day Monday. The memo serves as an impetus for USGA officials to be more communicative when course setup questions are raised for any championship.

The philosophy isn't anything new, he said, just an effort to be more forthcoming. He also promised that issues will be dealt with swiftly and accordingly, treating each one nimbly and gingerly as the situation dictates. The philosophy isn't anything new, he said, just an effort to be more forthcoming. He also promised that issues will be dealt with swiftly and accordingly, treating each one nimbly and gingerly as the situation dictates. "Is this going to be a kinder, gentler USGA, kinder, gentler U.S. Open?," said Fay. "Let me tell you that nobody at the USGA was happy with what happened on Sunday. We simply weren't. Frankly, I wasn't all that pleased on Friday night when, after the first two rounds, the course was playing, in my judgment and in the judgment of my colleagues, wasn't playing the way we wanted it to. "What happened on Sunday, it got away from us. But one thing I can assure you is that we still want the U.S. Open to be a tough, fair championship. Emphasis on the word tough. Because that's the history of the U.S. Open. It's not a history of 25 years, it's a history of over a hundred years. ... We're not trying to provide a tricked-up layout."

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