"Right there it wouldn't pass Architecture 101"
/Len Ziehm talks to a few players about Cog Hill and it's interesting to see how guys are getting more specific in their analysis of what makes something poor for tournament play.
''I got here for the pro-am and got the same yardage on all the par-3s. Right there it wouldn't pass Architecture 101,'' Mickelson said.
He has a point. The par-3s measured 228, 244, 221 and 218 in the BMW setup. Not much variety there.
And this from Sean O'Hair and Jim Furyk about the green complexes at U.S. Open speeds:
''It would be a little ridiculous,'' he said. ''These greens are way too undulated for a U.S. Open golf course. The greens didn't play that fast, but they were firm. The U.S. Open style is to have them at 11 or 12 [on the stimpmeter]. If they played that speed here, this course would be unplayable.''
Jim Furyk said Dubsdread ''could definitely hold a major'' but felt O'Hair had a point. ''The setup we had was a little mellow,'' Furyk said. ''The greens weren't all that firm. If they were, they could become unplayable. This is one of those venues that you don't worry if it's tough enough. The worry you have is, 'Have we made it unplayable?'''
Buried was this about the future of Chicago venues...
Tiger Woods thinks a public course would best fit the Olympic spirit, meaning Cog Hill and Harborside -- attractively located within the Chicago city limits -- might have an edge. Medinah is said to be in line for the 2018 PGA Championship, which would rule out hosting a U.S. Open the year before. Olympia Fields appears more likely to get the U.S. Amateur in 2015 as the highlight of the club's 100th anniversary.
I'm not sure why a 2018 PGA in Chicago would rule out an Open there in 2017, unless the PGA moves first? Because sales-wise, won't a U.S. Open kill a PGA?
Either way, knowing how much everyone adores Medinah--particularly all of the contractors who made money reconstructing it over the last two decades--we can only hope and pray they return for another PGA. Fingers crossed!