Jack Admits To "Elephant Mode" Phase And This Week's Contestants Confirm
/Jack Walkden featured some fantastic stuff from Jack Nicklaus about his Benton Harbor project that hosts this week's Senior PGA. And this was before the players started weighing in on the course.
"I really actually had fun," Nicklaus said. "I had a man named Chris Rule who worked for me. He did a routing and I came and looked at it and didn't change a thing. He had done such a beautiful job. I always change routings. This was the first time I ever left one alone. It was probably because I didn't know which building to go through next, which door to open to get to the next hole."
And now about the greens...
"I've seen a lot of people in the locker room and they've come to me and said, 'Jack, what a great golf course.' I asked, 'Have you putted the greens yet?' And they say, 'Yeah.' And I said, 'Were you able to get from point A to point B?' And they did say that they had a little trouble with that. I was in my elephant mode at that time. I was dropping the greens every place I could find. There's a little spice in the greens, but the golf course is a good golf course. It's in beautiful condition. They've done a great job."
The players have been saying different things when Jack was not present. Bill Fields reports from Michigan:
"In terms of the golf course, I think it's a phenomenal golf course from tee to green," Bernhard Langer said Wednesday. "One of the world's best, I would say. But [they] could be the most severe or worst green complexes I've ever seen in my life."
Most severe, worst...take your pick!
And this from Fred Funk:
"I could be wrong, but I'm not sure it rewards the precise shot every time," said Fred Funk. "You think you hit the shot you wanted and you may not get rewarded for it. "
An AP story quoted Funk offering this suggestion:
"I thought maybe we could reverse the order and play the greens as tees and the tees as greens and it would be easier to putt," Funk said. "Just play in reverse."
You know, I may have to tune into this. Nothing better than cranky geezers. The Golf Channel and NBC airtimes:
Airtimes: Thursday Noon-3 p.m. (Live) / 6:30-9:30 p.m. (Replay)
Friday Noon-3 p.m. (Live) / 6:30-9:30 p.m. (Replay)
Saturday 3-6 p.m. ET (Live) – NBC
Sunday 3-6 p.m. ET (Live) – NBC
