Jordan Spieth of the USA in action during a practice day ahead of the 150th Open at St Andrews Jordan Spieth of the USA in action during a practice day ahead of the 150th Open at St Andrews. Picture: Robert Perry/EPA
Johannesburg - One of the glories of golf is the short par-4. These holes offer the less skilled, short-hitting hacker a chance for a coveted par. And for the professionals it’s an opportunity to grip it and rip it, drive the green, and make a birdie three or even an eagle two.
The Old Course at St Andrews has five short par-4s (all of these under 400 yards) and in this week’s 150th Open there will be more than just a little intrigue as to whether the likes of big-hitting Bryson Dechambeau or our own Dean Burmester (who can both comfortably hit the ball 400 yards) are going to make mincemeat of these holes, or if they are are going to overreach themselves and hook one into the gorse bushes that lurk uncomfortably close to the fairways.
Number seven on the Old Course is 372 yards but a big bunker in front of the putting surface makes driving the green here unlikely. Not so at No 9 (352 yards), No 10 (386 yards), No 12 (348 yards) and No 18 (357 yards).
In the final round of the 2010 Open at St Andrews Louis Oosthuizen let rip at the ninth with his driver, found the green in one and then drained a mammoth 50-footer for an eagle two that helped the little South African on the path to victory. His closest challenger at the time, playing partner Paul Casey of England, also let rip at the 12th in a bid to reach the green with his drive.
But, as the “World Atlas of Golf” states: “There never was a hole more obviously the work of the Devil than the 12th, where seeming innocence conceals all manner of evil.”
Infested with bunkers, even in the middle of the fairway, and gorse to the left, it is hard to believe so much danger exists between tee and green. Casey’s drive there in 2010 finished in the gorse which led to a triple-bogey seven while Oosthuizen nailed a 15-footer for a birdie three.
In the 1946 Open won by Sam Snead, the American with his stylish swing and immense power drove the green at the 10th in three of the four rounds while at No 12 he drove the green two out of four times. “Slammin” Sam won that year on 290, with fellow American Johnny Bulla and Bobby Locke joint runners-up on 294. Snead didn’t enjoy travelling outside the United States and didn’t care too much for Britain, it’s golf courses and it’s food. On first laying eyes on St Andrews, he said it looked like an “old, abandoned golf course”.
Which upset the British public no end. He described The Open (he only played it three times in his long career) as “just another tournament”. Still, his name is on the trophy. When asked, after his victory in 1946, if he had enjoyed Scotland, he replied: “Whenever you leave the USA, boy, you’re just camping out.”
Of the short par-fours at St Andrews, the 18th stands out in the sense that this is where all the drama unfolds and the championship is won or lost. In 1970 Jack Nicklaus and Doug Sanders tied at the top through 72 holes on 283 (Sanders infamously missing a yard-long putt at 18 that would given him the win). That meant an 18-hole play-off the next day and, coming to the 18th, the two men were level pegging. Sanders drove up short of the green on his way to a par.
Nicklaus, though, and this has gone down in golfing folklore, removed his jersey and let rip – hitting the ball so hard that it ran through the green into the rough at the back. From there he managed to chip and putt for birdie and the second of his three Open wins.
So, what’s it going to be like watching the world’s great players letting rip on those short par-4s on television this week? Well, it’s going to be an absolute blast. Literally.
IOL Sport