SOUTHPORT, England – There won’t be another Jordan Spieth miracle bogey at Royal Birkdale this time around at the 154th British Open.
That’s because the area right of right at the par-4 13th hole will be considered out of bounds. Instead of the range as it was in 2017 when Spieth was the Champion Golfer of the Year, that ****** e will be utilized as the site of the fan village with OB beginning at the cart path to the right of the dunes.
Spieth’s opening comment in his press conference after winning in 2017 was, “We’re going to skip the first twelve holes, right?”, referring to his adventurous bogey-five on the 13th, followed by a finish of birdie, eagle, birdie, birdie, par to win by three strokes.
Who can forget Spieth fanning his tee shot so far right at 13 that it struck the noggin of a fan and ricocheted into an unplayable lie on the side of a dune. Then it took about a half an hour to determine his relief. Spieth ended up hitting his third shot from the club’s driving range.
That’s not the only change to the hole since the last Open was here. There is a new left tee box that alters the angle to a fairway pinched in by new bunkering to the right and an expanded dune dividing the 13th from the fan village and a ditch that runs the length of the hole to the left. The greenside bunker that Spieth had to pitch over for his fourth shot also has been pushed back nearer to the green. Spieth pitched to 10 feet and canned the putt for an improbable bogey to fall only one stroke back of Matt Kuchar. Then he rifled a 6-iron that lipped out to 5 feet at the par-3 14th. That hole had been dropped from the layout, the green saved as part of a short-game practice area. The new 14th is what used to be the par-5 15th, remodeled into a 602-yard par 5 with the green moved back some 30 yards from its previous location. The 241-yard, par-3 15th is a new short hole created to diversify the directions and lengths of the course’s par 3s.
That’s because the area right of right at the par-4 13th hole will be considered out of bounds. Instead of the range as it was in 2017 when Spieth was the Champion Golfer of the Year, that ****** e will be utilized as the site of the fan village with OB beginning at the cart path to the right of the dunes.
Spieth’s opening comment in his press conference after winning in 2017 was, “We’re going to skip the first twelve holes, right?”, referring to his adventurous bogey-five on the 13th, followed by a finish of birdie, eagle, birdie, birdie, par to win by three strokes.
Who can forget Spieth fanning his tee shot so far right at 13 that it struck the noggin of a fan and ricocheted into an unplayable lie on the side of a dune. Then it took about a half an hour to determine his relief. Spieth ended up hitting his third shot from the club’s driving range.
That’s not the only change to the hole since the last Open was here. There is a new left tee box that alters the angle to a fairway pinched in by new bunkering to the right and an expanded dune dividing the 13th from the fan village and a ditch that runs the length of the hole to the left. The greenside bunker that Spieth had to pitch over for his fourth shot also has been pushed back nearer to the green. Spieth pitched to 10 feet and canned the putt for an improbable bogey to fall only one stroke back of Matt Kuchar. Then he rifled a 6-iron that lipped out to 5 feet at the par-3 14th. That hole had been dropped from the layout, the green saved as part of a short-game practice area. The new 14th is what used to be the par-5 15th, remodeled into a 602-yard par 5 with the green moved back some 30 yards from its previous location. The 241-yard, par-3 15th is a new short hole created to diversify the directions and lengths of the course’s par 3s.
3 months ago
