00:00As we look ahead to the 2030 U.S. Open, what the learns were for the USGA from this competition
00:07and like, do you think things change or alter?
00:10Do you think the course gets placed differently by professionals?
00:12I mean, I think the average distance for these guys can't be too much shorter than the pros, if not
00:18longer.
00:18All these young kids seemingly are the longest of the whole category.
00:21But just thinking about because I think that there is something here and it's been an ongoing discussion we've had
00:26on the show really this entire year.
00:28We had a little mini discussion about Donald Ross architecture coming out of the Detroit Golf Club, the Rocket there.
00:34But even going back to Aronimink and the way that course was designed and played and how different it was
00:42than the test these pros normally expect.
00:44And so when you go to a place like Marion, I think this is something that any modern architect doing
00:49a new builder or restoration is trying to kind of wrestle with is how much slope can I put in
00:54the greens to match modern green speeds?
00:57And if you're restoring something, is it, you know, do you add in all the slope undulation, but also keep
01:04it at modern speeds and just resign yourself to we only have two or three realistic hole locations on the
01:10screen?
01:10Or do you try to kind of mute some of those slopes, maybe roll the greens, you know, nothing more
01:15than 13?
01:16That's what they did. That's what they did with the restoration project.
01:19And even with that, like you can make a case at 17 is like a little bit like too much
01:25as far as just like the ability to hold a proper shot from 200 plus.
01:31Right. That that's kind of like the argument that I have of like some hole locations, like legitimately you you
01:36can't play a shot to like the front right hole location that we saw in match play.
01:41It was like you can maybe get there with like a pitching wedge, but like guys were in seven irons.
01:45It's like, OK, that and guys really just did not know what to do.
01:50But I think back to just kind of 18, you know, when we kind of think about how far the
01:54golf ball goes and how players are trying to create statistical advantages by hitting the ball further.
01:58And of course, watching these ams, you know, who just kind of busted around and just go go ahead and
02:03go find it.
02:04There's a there is kind of a beauty in how the 18th hole plays.
02:08The fact that it kind of it makes you make a decision of, OK, if you want to hit driver
02:13and you're long enough, you can probably hit it downhill.
02:16It's probably about three hundred and five yards, give or take to the top.
02:19So if you hit a good drive, it'll get down the hill.
02:22But the thing is, it's so pitched on the in the fairway, the ball is not going to stay in
02:26the fairway.
02:26So if you're fine with gaining the advantage of of getting that extra 40 yards, but playing from from the
02:33rough, but with something that might be an eight or seven iron that you might be able to, you know,
02:39control a little bit, you know, not like full control from a height and spin standpoint.
02:44But like that's an option for you if you don't want to hit it to the top of the hill
02:48and have 210 yards to the front with a green that works away like you have to land it literally
02:55a step.
02:56Short of the false front where it starts to, like, go the other way or it's going to be gone.
03:01So all week I was watching guys with ball above their feet trying to hit these high cut four irons
03:08to try to hold the green.
03:09And they were all ending up short, right, because they were trying to hit this perfect golf shot.
03:14I'm like, guys, it's match play.
03:16It's not stroke play.
03:17Right.
03:17Rip this like hit it solid, hit it over the green, pitch back up the hill.
03:21And so I was seeing I was kind of getting like in especially from 14 to 18 guys like not
03:29just not knowing the percentages of where to get up and down and how that it could affect you based
03:36off where your opponent is.
03:37I was just driving.
03:38It was driving.
03:39I was driving myself nuts, like watching some of these guys make these decisions.
03:43And I know they're really, really difficult shots.
03:45Right.
03:45But I also know that, like, it's like, can you if you just put your ball here, then then you're
03:51probably going to win the hole or like you're not definitely not going to lose the hole.
03:55Well, and that's why I think this is such a perfect venue for a match play competition, because par shouldn't
04:01matter.
04:02You know, it really is.
04:03You're just playing the guy next to you.
04:04And if 17 is unfair for you, guess what's also going to be unfair for him?
04:08And I think, too, that and I understand all the all of your thoughts on on why maybe some of
04:13these holes, you can have a discussion about how fair it is.
04:16But for me, I think that we're viewing like 18 strategy, like we're viewing that the lens of is it
04:22fair within the confines of the strategy these players are employing, which is any stat book or any of these
04:28guys that use to kind of form is just smash driver as long as you can.
04:32And to your point, just play it from there, because your expected strokes gain is going to be greater from
04:37shorter than it is from longer back.
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