Tuesday August 7, 2007
Golf: In a year of tough majors, players have had plenty of experience
TULSA, Oklahoma (AP) - Tiger Woods usually goes on vacation after winning the World Golf Championship Bridgestone Invitational, but that changed this year when it was moved to the week before the U.S. PGA Championship.
He was at Southern Hills Country Club Monday morning getting ready for golf's final major of 2007.
Considering how this year on the U.S. tour has gone, that might have felt like a vacation.
The American tour has been one big grind this year, a seemingly endless supply of courses with deep rough, tricky pins and high scores. Woods was the only player under par last week at the Bridgestone Invitational, which had the fewest number of players in red numbers at a regular U.S. tour event since the 1995 Tour Championship.
Southern Hills figures to be a solid test, typical of any major.
But as Steve Stricker noted last week, "It seems like every week we're getting one of these.''
"The golf courses are so much harder,'' Woods said.
"Stevie (Williams) and I were talking about this. Have we played a tournament yet where you had to go low? With our schedule of tournaments I've played in, that hasn't been the case at all.''
And he's not alone.
One indicator that has surprised everyone from players to rules officials is birdies per round.
The U.S. tour leader in that category has averaged at least 4.4 birdies per round every year since 1999.
Going into the American PGA, the leader is Jonathan Byrd at 3.85.
If the trend continues - and it doesn't figure to get easier the next month - it would be the first time since 1990 that no one on the U.S. tour averaged more than four birdies per round.
Woods, who has never finished lower than fifth in that category, is currently at No. 39.
"It just gets to the point where every course is a long, long golf course with deep, deep rough,'' Davis Love III said.
"It gets a little stressful. You can't get away with very much, and you have to be right on perfect. You miss a fairway, you're hard-pressed to get it back on the green. They keep lengthening courses that are already long. It's just tough.''
Adam Scott was asked how many majors it feels as though he has played this year.
He used his fingers to start ticking them off, and he wound up using both hands.
"Probably seven,'' he said, and this was before he went out for his first practice round at Southern Hills.
He mentioned the three majors that already have taken place.
There was the Wachovia Championship and The Players Championship in consecutive weeks.
The International, which produced birdies and eagles galore, was replaced by the AT&T National at Congressional.
And don't forget the Bridgestone at Firestone Country Club, which several players figured was suitable for a U.S. Open without any gimmicks from the USGA.
"You've got to play for par these days,'' Scott said.
"You used to have that one or two times a year, and that was a challenge. But every week it starts to get boring. It lacks imagination.''
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