in·ter·est·ing (in-t(ə-)rəs-tiŋ) : holding the attention : arousing interest

It's hard to interpret the early reviews of Liberty National, but it seems like most of the players are trying their best not to blast the design. Shoot, Norman Vincent Ogilvy is tweeting about how great it is that players are actually discussing design. Granted, it took a Cupp-Kite nightmare, but he's finding the positive in that. Impressive restraint!

In case you want the backstory in print form before CBS drums it into us, Michael Buteau does a nice job explaining how the place came about and how much it all cost.

Adam Schupak sums up Tiger's not so subliminal description of the design in today's presser.

“It's interesting,” Woods said.

In a good way?

“It's interesting,” Woods repeated.

Hank Gola writes this...

One prominent Tour player was saying earlier this year it would be the worst course his fellow golfers would play in 2009. Another quipped it will be the best course he'll play this week.
Vijay Singh thinks the course has "its own character" and "will grow on people."

But his answer to what style of player the course favors was telling.

"One who doesn't worry about what the golf course is and just plays one shot at a time," he said. "You go out there and start criticizing the golf course, then you might as well not show up."

Jonathan Wade says this is probably Liberty's only shot...

It's clear the tour is considering the idea of making Liberty National a regular part of a rotation in the New York metropolitan area. A press release by the PGA Tour on Monday announced that Ridgewood Country Club in Paramus, N.J., and Plainfield Country Club in Edison, N.J., will host the event in 2010 and 2011 respectively, but the event's future is unclear after that. The tour also has a contract with Westchester to bring the event back there once before 2012, but there was no mention of Westchester in the release.

The press conferences revealed one player who likes the place and one who artfully avoided the question.

Q. What do you think of your golf course since you're a member here?

PHIL MICKELSON: Well, I love it. I love it because I think the shots around the greens have been very well thought out. I think the greens have movement to them, but it's subtle movement. It's not these big humps and hollows that modern architecture seems to have. The rough doesn't go right up to the edge of the green. There's a lot of shaved areas that extends out. There's a lot of movement, so you get different lies, and I think around the greens it's within very well thought out. I think it's hard, though. It's a hard golf course. Tee-to-green it's very demanding.

Q. How many times have you played this before?

PHIL MICKELSON: Just a handful, just five or six.

And the artist...