|
 |   |
EVENTS
CENTERS
CNNSI.com GROUP |  |
Closer Look PGA theme: Hurry up and wait!
By Yi-Wyn Yen, Sports Illustrated LOUISVILLE, Ky. -- The only thing slower than fashion sense and fast food service in the Bluegrass State is the pace of play at Valhalla Golf Club. "You know it's bad when you've got the most notoriously slow players complaining," John Huston said. The second round of the PGA Championship lasted longer than the "Godfather" trilogy and produced a lot of finger-pointing and fault-finding. Kerry Haigh, senior director of tournaments for the PGA of America, blames the four par 5's that are easily reached in two. Players blamed the PGA ... among other things. Dennis Paulson blamed the layout of the course. Colin Montgomerie blamed the heat. Stuart Appleby blamed the course. Jeff Sluman blamed the officials. Huston blamed slow players. "If guys knew it was going to take this long, no one would play," Huston said. Ben Crenshaw, Tom Lehman, Jim Carter and Dudley Hart all withdrew after the first round. Poor play certainly was one reason, but enduring another 5 1/2-hour marathon in grueling heat was another. If they had stayed, they would have played at a slightly better pace on Friday ... though not by much. Overnight rains softened the greens and less difficult pin placements made the course play easier. On average, threesomes finished about a half hour sooner than they did in the first round. Huston thinks they should have played even faster. "There's no reason why we can't all play in 4 1/2 hours," he said. The first group -- three clubs pros -- did finish in 4:30. The third group -- Steve Pate, Stewart Cink and Padraig Harrington -- slowed down to 4:43. By the time the afternoon groups teed off, the congestion was backed another hour. Eleven players weren't able to finish due to darkness. "It was a mistake to not have guys go off the first and tenth tees," Mark Calcavecchia said. "That was just stupid on the PGA's part." Some players waited up to 40 minutes on the tee box of the second hole on Thursday. "They need to come in and say, `Boom, you're playing too slow. You're getting penalized.' No question," Sluman said. The PGA argues that putting players on the clock so early sacrifices the quality of play. Huston argues that's just part of the game. "If you can't make up your mind, too bad," he said. Rolling his eyes about the turtle pace of playing partner Bernhard Langer, Huston said his ideal group would include Calcavecchia and Steve Flesch. Players get 40 seconds to hit their shot, another 10 if you're first to hit and 20 more if you're hitting onto a par-3. Said Huston, "We'd be done in 3 1/2 hours tops."
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
