"It's not a routing we'd ask our members to play on a regular basis, unless we'd want them all to become tennis members."
/Dave Hackenburg previews the U.S. Senior Open at Inverness where a peculiar sounding re-routing has taken place to help with gallery flow.
There will be no par-5 holes on the back nine and the course's par of 71 will be a 37-34 split over 7,143 yards.
"It's not a routing we'd ask our members to play on a regular basis, unless we'd want them all to become tennis members," quipped Inverness president Tom Geiger Jr. "The back nine will include five of the toughest holes on the golf course. How about 7-17-18 for the finish? Hold onto your hats."
Inverness head professional David Graf points out that "in every major tournament, plus the NCAA men's championship we had [in 2009], where we have tracked scores, Nos. 3 through 7 always are the five most difficult holes on the course."
Now they will be Nos. 12-16 and will immediately precede the 470-yard, par-4 17th hole and the well-bunkered 18th hole that is perhaps the most famous short finishing hole in major championship golf, yet plenty demanding, at 354 yards.