Jack On Muirfield Village's Heavily Bunkered 18th: "It looks like something I had to do to protect the hole."

Okay, now that Jack Nicklaus has said what we all know to be the case, the 18th at Muirfield Village doesn't look as good as it used to look. But it's not Mr. Nicklaus' fault that players were taking a short cut thanks to modern equipment, so he liberally sprinkled bunkers to maintain relevancy for the finishing hole at the Memorial. A lot of bunkers.

And now he acknowledges in this Rusty Miller note, too many.

"Every time I look on television, I look down and see all those bunkers along 18 and I don't think it's a pretty look," Nicklaus said, referring to right side of the landing area beyond a walnut tree. "It looks like something I had to do to protect the hole. All the other holes on the golf course are basically played the way they were designed. Eighteen is the only hole where they are able to circumvent the design. They take it over the corner and get it out there.

"To me, the finishing hole needs to be stronger."

Monday after the Memorial, Nicklaus will meet with superintendent Paul Latshaw to evaluate the tourament and the club will proceed accordingly. Nicklaus told the press Wednesday that a new tee could extend the hole by 30 yards to return the driver to relevancy on the finishing hole.

Though Latshaw did tell me the timing could be anywhere from ASAP to a few years from now depending on what Mr. Nicklaus says. With the Presidents Cup looming this fall, I won't be surprised if the new 18th tee is built sooner than later. The added bunkers?  That may take a bit longer to deal with.