Five Really Minor Royal Melbourne Quibbles

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As I continue on in the land where Internet access went to die, a few final reflections from Tasmania on the Presidents Cup week at glorious Royal Melbourne. The week wasn't without a few minor hiccups worth noting for the next time championship golf returns there.

  • The horrifying, absurd and totally unnecessary rough in several places that could be replaced by firm, sandy scrub, maintaining the challenge while returning the beauty. Golfers might also be able to see the sixth hole (West) fairway bunkers again. (Example of sandy look, left photo.)
  • The dreadful landscaping effort down the 15th fairway (17 East). New mounds and out-of-place landscaping need to be replaced by the new consulting architect who presumably replaces the person that came up with this.
  • Using the first and second holes of the West Course as the Presidents Cup finishing holes. Even though they were not reached a lot, I still wonder if they should have been the openers and the 18th on the East the finisher (instead of playing as the 16th on the Composite). The course might have had a slightly kinder opening flow, and a stronger finish.
  • That the bunkers being so groomed during the Presidents Cup. Instead, go for the look seen at the rest of the sandbelt and rake 'em just a couple of times a week, leaving the floors nice and firm.
  • That we won't be returning to this magnificent, endlessly fascinating and ideal venue for championship golf anytime soon, or for a major championship. But the women will be there in February and we'll get another fix of this amazing place.

10 Great Things About Royal Melbourne

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With the holiday week and my need to inspect Tasmania's finest golf, not to mention a 15 hour plane ride home, posting will be light. Still, I just can't let go of Royal Melbourne yet, so there's my Golf World Monday item with a few player quotes and here, in a stunning world exclusive, a few more thoughts on the course.

Frankly, it's morbidly depressing to think we won't see a tournament golf course this fascinating for a while. I could have filed a book on what I saw out at Royal Melbourne this week, but I'll only bore you with a few observations.

  • The course gets more interesting, more fascinating and more beguiling each day you study it. I watched five days of golf there and feel like I hardly know it.
  • The greens are complex, yet the key features are easy to remember. This is vital in attracting the affection of players who want to shape shots off of the contours (and therefore, makes the strategy so much more interesting.)
  • The conditioning. So firm, so fast and so pure, yet not too green or unnatural in appearance.
  • The bunker faces are firm with little-to-no sand on them while the floors are raked. There is simply no excuse for not doing this in the United States and elsewhere.
  • The club has the best members-only logo in golf. I'd post it, but what's the point. We aren't members.
  • Not all of the best holes on the property are on the Composite course, meaning the tired suggestion that it's not great because it requires a Composite 18 is, well, tired.
  • The par-3s. Tiger said it after the round, and it was echoed by several players: par-3s do not need to be 250 yards to be interesting. They can be 150 yards and still all the best players can handle...assuming the architect did his job. And to think they left out several others on the property that would have been just as fascinating to watch.
  • Every Presidents Cup match played the most interesting holes on the course. Yes, many of RM's standout holes came early in the round, but every match passed through the first through sixth holes, and for that matter, the seventh through thirteenth. It was considered an unusual flow, but it worked well.
  • They open their doors to professional golf. The Presidents Cup this week, the LPGA in February.
  • The Composite course features three of the best short par-4s in the world. As in, top 10 on my or most sane individuals' list of favorite short par-4s: 1, 6, 10 on this year's Composite, better known as 3 West, 10 West and 1 East.

"MOST WATCHED DAY TWO IN PRESIDENTS CUP HISTORY"

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For Immediate Release, as some of you watch Day 4...

Tops Day One to Become Most-Watched Day of Presidents Cup Ever on Cable;
Both Days on Golf Channel Surpass Any Previous Cable Coverage
 
ORLANDO, Fla. (Nov. 20, 2011)– Golf Channel’s coverage of The Presidents Cup broke another record, with Day Two viewership topping Day One – the previous best day – to become the most-watched day on cable in the history of the biennial tournament, according to preliminary national ratings released today by Nielsen. This milestone is especially significant given the 16-hour time difference between the U.S. Eastern time zone and Australia.
 
Golf Channel's Day One and Day Two coverage from Melbourne both surpass all previous days on cable TV in the history of the event, which includes four days on ESPN, eight days on TNT and two days on Golf Channel.

Data showed average viewers for Day Two coverage was 1,508,000.  Average viewers for Day One and Day Two combined was up 123 percent from comparable days when the event was last played overseas (South Africa, 2003). Viewership for Day Three and the Final Day of The Presidents Cup will be available when national ratings are released by Nielsen.

The Presidents Cup Day Two coverage anchored Golf Channel’s Thursday primetime schedule, which replaced Wednesday as the most-watched and highest-rated night in primetime ever on the network.

2011 Presidents Cup, Kneejerk Reactions

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I have writing duties, but I think I can sum this place up pretty succinctly: the course got better, more interesting, more intricate and more fascinating to watch every day. Only the Old Course might be more interesting, but certainly not as fun for spectating because of sightlines.

Anyway, I was parked on the first hole Sunday, so that's where my images are fun. Your thoughts...assuming you aren't waiting to watch the tape delay coverage on NBC.

 

Captains Look To Stave Off High Ratings With Sunday Singles Selections

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There's nothing quite like running out K.T. Kim in the opening slot or pitting Woods against Baddeley when you could have had a much sexier Y.E. Yang matchup to keep viewers tuned in well after the U.S. seals the Presidents Cup. Yet that's what the otherwise entertainment-savvy Captains set us up for Sunday at Royal Melbourne:

MATCH 23 – K.T. Kim, International vs. Webb Simpson, U.S.
MATCH 24 – Dustin Johnson, U.S. vs. Charl Schwartzel, International
MATCH 25 – Ryo Ishikawa, International vs. Bubba Watson, U.S.
MATCH 26 – Bill Haas, U.S. vs. Geoff Ogilvy, International
MATCH 27 – Jason Day, International vs. Hunter Mahan, U.S.
MATCH 28 – Nick Watney, U.S. vs. K.J. Choi, International
MATCH 29 – Adam Scott, International vs. Phil Mickelson, U.S.
MATCH 30 – Matt Kuchar, U.S. vs. Retief Goosen, International
MATCH 31 – Ernie Els, International vs. Jim Furyk, U.S.
MATCH 32 – David Toms, U.S. vs. Robert Allenby, International
MATCH 33 – Aaron Baddeley, International vs. Tiger Woods, U.S.
MATCH 34 – Steve Stricker, U.S. vs. Y,E. Yang, International

"MOST WATCHED DAY ONE IN PRESIDENTS CUP HISTORY"

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For Immediate Release...

Golf Channel Coverage from Australia Draws Nearly 1.3 Million Viewers, Beats All Previous Day One’s of the Event
 
ORLANDO, Fla. (Nov. 18, 2011) – Golf Channel’s Day One coverage of The Presidents Cup from Melbourne, Australia, is the most-watched day one in the event’s history, drawing nearly 1.3 million average viewers.

The household rating for the telecast (1.2 / 1,268,000) was up 88 percent from the last comparable round when the biennial event was played overseas (South Africa, 2003) and five percent higher than the previous best day one of the event, played in San Francisco in 2009. This record rating is especially significant given the 16 hour time difference between Melbourne and the East Coast of the United States.

The rating peaked at 1.5 when Tiger Woods teed off against a pairing featuring Adam Scott, who currently employs Woods’ former caddie, Steve Williams.

“This record audience is a real testament to the growing popularity of the game of golf around the globe,” said Golf Channel President Mike McCarley from Melbourne. “The fact that this U.S. television record was set from an event 16 hours away is an especially strong signal for the vitality of golf. We're hearing loud and clear from our passionate viewers that they love primetime golf.”

Random Day 2 Images From The Presidents Cup

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Brutal conditions but fascinating golf. A few quick observations...

- The Americans have acquitted themselves beautifully but I did see a few cracks today, with Nick Watney hitting way too many high approaches. He and partner Haas also laid up poorly on the short par-4 sixth whole Ogilvy and Choi played further back and both hit beautiful approaches.

- The pace of play could be justified at times because of the conditions, but it became appalling that the Baddeley-Day team was not asked to pick it up. Their slow play created a front nine logjam, most of it Day's doing.

- The 18th hole rough (note below Bill Haas photo on 18) is becoming increasingly tedious and worrisome if the matches come down to the last hole Sunday. The green is wild enough. Trying to control an approach into it from the fairway is enough challenge. Bomb and gouge is the play.

- I can't fathom what Captain Greg Norman is thinking by pairing Robert Allenby with Geoff Ogilvy in Saturday's foursomes. Ogilvy has been solid and appeared to have a nice bond with partners Schwartzel and Choi. Allenby hasn't been good. Foursomes is a sensitive format, requiring matching personalities and compatible games. Stick Allenby with another likely lost point, and try to win four points with your best combinations.

These photos can also be viewed here:

2011 Presidents Cup Second Day Open Thread

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Four-balls, hot and high winds, Royal Melbourne...should be fun. I'm off to the links, but would love to hear what you are seeing.

The matches, all times ET:

5:35 p.m. ET -- Bubba Watson and Webb Simpson, United States, vs. Ernie Els and Ryo Ishikawa, International.
5:49 p.m. ET -- Dustin Johnson and Tiger Woods, United States, vs. Aaron Baddeley and Jason Day, International.
6:03 p.m. ET -- Phil Mickelson and Jim Furyk, United States, vs. Adam Scott and K.T. Kim, International.
6:17 p.m. ET -- Bill Haas and Nick Watney, United States, vs. Geoff Ogilvy and K.J. Choi, International.
6:31 p.m. ET -- Matt Kuchar and Steve Stricker, United States, vs. Y.E. Yang and Robert Allenby, International.
6:45 p.m. ET -- Hunter Mahan and David Toms, United States, vs. Retief Goosen and Charl Schwartzel, International.

"No gimme for Steve Stricker on a 2-footer?"

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A fun bit from the Choi-Scott v. Woods/Stricker blowout Thursday, courtesy of Bob Harig.

No gimme for Steve Stricker on a 2-footer?

"I was very surprised,'' Woods said. "Probably the best putter on the planet. I don't think he's missed one of those [since] coming out of the womb.''

And yet, Woods would be the first to admit that if there were any angst from that moment, if there was to be any motivation derived from such a perceived slight, it didn't happen.

From that point forward, the match of the day was a dud -- unless, of course, you're a fan of the International side, or Scott and Choi in particular, or perhaps in seeing Williams exact some revenge on his old boss (if you could even call it that).

FanVision Down Under...For A Good Cause

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I was stopped about ten times during day one of the Presidents Cup and asked to explain what the device was hanging around my neck. Longtime readers here know it to be FanVision, the incredibly cool televisions/leaderboards available at select major championships.

This week they're sponsored by Citi and for a $20 donation fans can pick them up at the entrance. All proceeds are going to Mission Australia, whose "vision is to see a fairer Australia enabling people in need to find pathways to a better life." I have no idea what that means, but it sounds fantastic. Especially if it takes the fan experience to a new level.