This week’s World Golf Championship-Cadillac Championship has attracted every player in the top 50 of the world rankings – a rare phenomenon with the last tournament to boast of such an achievement being the 2012 PGA Championship – and yet, there’s more talk about the golf course than Tiger Woods and company in the lead-up to the event.
That’s because the Blue Monster at Doral, which is considered one of the most iconic courses in the world, has been completely overhauled. This is not just a restoration, but a masterpiece being renovated.
We have seen in the past what kind of outrage changing such traditional courses can cause. All you have to do is look at Ernie Els’ efforts with Wentworth.
It has taken a couple more attempts to get the re-design right. And it is because of this reason that the spotlight this week is not on Tiger Woods or Rory McIlroy.
Instead, it is trained rather harshly on golf course designer Gil Hanse, who has done all the changes on a golf course that is now called Trump National Doral.
Hanse also happens to be the architect of Trump International Dubai, the new course which is being built as the heart of Damac Properties’ new Akoya community.
He was in the city recently to oversee the progress of the golf course, and I had the chance to speak to him on the redesign of Doral. I asked him how important is the validation of the course by the Tour players?
Hanse said it was important that players and the media view it favourably, because that helps form an opinion about the golf course, but more important is what the owner and the club members who will be using it for the remaining 51 weeks of the year think about it.
And Hanse is delighted with the reaction he has got so far from Trump and the members.
On what was tougher – designing a golf course or redesigning it, Hanse said it was far more easier to create something out of nothing, than redesign a classic course, where you have to be wary of so many things, including people’s expectations, and be very careful not to ruin the legacy of the original golf course.
On whether Tiger Woods, who has won four times at Doral in the past, will still be a favourite, given he has changed the greens on almost every hole, Hanse said: “It is true that of all the aspects of a golf course, it is the greens that players become extremely familiar with. Because we have changed most greens, it will be a whole new golf course for every player.
“Having said that, Tiger really is a freak. He can walk on to a golf course for the first time on the opening day of the tournament and still win it.”
That seems a possibility this week as Woods had not shown up at Doral until Wednesday morning after withdrawing from the Honda Classic last week with back spasms.
Hanse said he did not do much to the 18th hole, but apart from that, he changed quite a few things. His favourite part of the re-design?The par-3 15th and the par-4 16th, which are his two favourite design signatures – a very short par-3, and a driveable par-4.
The 16th wears a completely new look, with the clump of trees where the fairway turned all gone, replaced by a lake and the green guarded by a massive bunker.
It is said Hanse’s biggest test will be when his 2016 Rio Olympic course opens, but this week might prove equally massive.
Pink Panther strikes again
Paula Creamer won the HSBC Women’s Champions in Singapore last week in stunning fashion, bringing her three-year winless run to an end.
The ‘Pink Panther’, who broke several hearts by announcing her engagement to a Navy pilot, literally stole the trophy and the winner’s cheque in broad daylight.
In the second playoff hole against Azahara Munoz, the American drained a 75-footer eagle putt. It was as good as the grandstand finishes that we have almost got used to seeing at the DP World Tour Championship.
Henrik Stenson hit a wood and almost made an albatross on the par-5 18th of the Earth course, while Alvaro Quiros sank a 50-footer with more than a couple of breaks in winning in 2011.
Stat of the Week
-8: Russell Henley’s score over the back nine of the PGA National in winning this year’s Honda Classic. That was two shots better than the second best in the field. T
he back nine of the PGA National is considered one of the toughest on the PGA Tour and includes the stretch of last four holes which is now called the ‘Bear’s Trap’. Of course, the golf course is designed by ‘Golden Bear’ Jack Nicklaus.
Quote of the Week
“It’s not embarrassing, because I think a lot of people in the same situation might have done the same thing. But I’ve learned from it and I’ve moved on. It wasn’t my finest hour, but at the end of the day, everyone makes mistakes.” – Rory McIlroy, on his decision to withdraw from last year’s Honda Classic citing tooth pain.
