Day One At The 2010 Open Championship

The required shot of 1 and 18, click image to enlargeIt's a sad state of affairs when the WiFi is better on the train than it is in the dorms of one of the world's great universities. So only now as the clock is past midnight am I even able to log on at dial-up speeds! Therefore the nightly comments will be brief and unfortunately, I won't be able to surf around and link to some of the better reporting as in the past. Plus, I just can't wait to hop into this top-sheet lacking bunk of a bed (because there was that unidentifiable object strongly resembling a mouse turd or a piece of dried ear wax from the ghost of Tom Morris resting on the sheet...what a nice welcoming gift).

Speaking of Old Tom, his ghost must be using my bathroom because the energy efficient light that only comes on by identifying a human presence will not go off. Sweet dreams!

Oh you want to hear about the golf?

- If you ever have the chance to take the train from London to St. Andrews, do it. What a joy. The scenery is magnificent (see my Tweets). Oh, and the trains run on time, they are immaculate, the service is friendly and did I mention, the WiFi was stellar too?

- The Old Course looks as splendid as you might imagine, though I was shocked by how lush it is. In the areas I walked, it is not particularly firm (especially compared to the courses I saw last week). If the weather is benign, the combination of today's equipment and modern agronomics will render the place vulnerable to super low scores. Not that we care about low scores, but it would be nice if some of the strategy is allowed to be presented.The 16th's fence and contours (click to enlarge image)

- Did you know they added a new tee on the Road hole? It's as if nothing else exists on the golf course based on today's media center chatter. Of course, the tee is absurd not in the added yardage it brings, which is appropriate given the regulatory malfeasance of the governing bodies. Furthermore, the tee has been melded discreetly into the path between the tee and 16th. But there is the absurdity once again of teeing off over boundary stakes. No matter how much you prepare for it after the last Open, the sight remains bizarre.

- The other real crime of the Road continues to be all of the rough, which not only is in places where there should be fairway, and includes an unnatural narrowing down to 13 paces about 75 yards from the green, but it's also rough that appears to have been unnaturally prepared compared to other native grasses on the property. And with a green complex to approach to like that, it's unnecessary to be irrigating hay off to the side of a 495-yard beast.

- Tuesday marks honorary degree day for Arnold Palmer, Tom Watson and Padraig Harrington. The University of St. Andrews has been called out for Tiger's omission, but the real surprise is that they are giving Harrington a degree when he hasn't won at the Old Course and he's still a long way from completing his career. I will be attending and I believe you can watch online. My slow connection precludes me from pinpointing the web address of the event, which comes from the site of Bobby Jones's epic final appearance in St. Andrews. Perhaps someone can post a link below?

- Playing golf with hickories is just the best. But I'll bore you with that next week. The focus remains on the Home of Golf. At least, as long as I can get online.

The new 17th tee (click to enlarge)