Scotland on my Mind by Dan King Wednesday, July 17th The Open Championship Royal Lytham & St. Annes St. Annes, England

My first day at The Open. I've been to U.S. Opens and significant U.S. events, but this is my first time at The Open. It's special. There's a much more exciting feeling in air. Today was the final practice day, and I arrived early.

7:00, I walked the two blocks from the Golfweb house over to the clubhouse. Prices to watch the Open are very reasonable. £11.00 for the practice rounds and £22.00 for the tournament proper. You can buy a season pass for £85.00. I bought a practice day pass for today. I'm not big on crowds, so I'm not sure if I'll be here all 4 days. I'm already getting itchy to get another round or two in the U.K. I figure I can be in Dornoch in about 7 hours.

A cup of coffee and a bacon sandwich and I was ready to go watch some golf. I had already missed Jacobsen and Stewart who were out about 7:00. I walked across the 18th fairway to the first tee and there were Azinger and Weibring. I figure that's as good a group as any to watch and walk the course with. There are no crowds as of yet, and for most of the round, it's only myself and two or three others following Zinger and D.A. It seemed most of the early players out for the practice rounds are Americans.

Zinger and D.A, have a fairly good match going on the front-9. Near as I can tell, they both had two or three birdies going out with no bogies (though occasionally they picked up their original ball and played from other spots). D.A. seems concerned with bunkers that sit about 70 yards out from greens and how to play that shot. Zinger was working more with the greenside bunkers. With 186 bunkers on the course, they know they'll be visiting a few of them.

After the front 9, I kind of hung around the out-most holes to watch some other golfers. Immediately behind Zinger and D.A. were Wayne Riley and Ian Baker-Finch. Looks like Baker-Finch got Butch Edwards, Tom Watson's caddie. It also looks like Butch is going to have to work a lot harder this week (though it also looks like he won't be working past Friday). Ian is all over the course. He doesn't have a clue if he is going to miss his shot right or left. There is no consistency to his constant misses. I also saw him fluff a fairly simple chip twice. Both times lifting his head when hitting his shot.

A few other quick little notes I made:

David Leadbetter was with Paul Lawrie out on the course. Paul played the first three holes, then played 14 through 18, obviously on their way to the range to work on something.

It's interesting who plays practice rounds with who. At the Open it seems much more along national lines than on the regular tour. The Scots are mostly together. The Aussies play their round together, etc.. As always, Fuzzy and Daly play their practice rounds together.

Bradley Hughes is hitting a Wood Brothers Big Texas Persimmon driver.

After following Zinger and Weibring through 18, I spent about and hour in the exhibition tent. If I were not on a tight budget, I could have spent a few 100 quid at the Rhod McEwan booth. Plenty of wonderful old golf books in there. If I behave myself the rest of my time, maybe I can splurge on a book or two. His prices are not jacked up at all for the Open.

I went out to see the Nicklaus/Player/Charles/Barnes foursome. I caught up with them around the 5th hole, but there was a fairly good size crowd around them. The little while I watched, Nicklaus was hitting the ball very well, but leaving every putt short. Player looked the best of the four.

After the round I went into St. Annes to find cigars. There is a wine shop in town where the previous day I discovered their small humidor. The proprietor had told me he would be staying open this week until 9:00 p.m. Usually he closes at 6:00. I got over there about 6:15 and he was closed. Next door to the wine shop is Jack's. It's a continental restaurant which I assume is owned by Jack Nickolson (There's a large picture of him out in front with a picture of him as the Joker over the entry). Out in front where Davis Love III and crew waiting for a table, smoking cigars. I asked where they got them, and they said in a wine shop in Lytham. However, the wine shop said there was a sister shop in St. Annes. They believed it was one street over. Sure enough, there was a Threshers in the direction they gave, but the selection was poor. I went back to Jack's and told DLIII it was there but nothing special. We discussed places to get cigars in UK and he asked me about my trip. He may try and get connected to check out my reports on Golfweb. DLIII doesn't believe scores will be as low as predicted because the lack of moisture will make fairways faster, resulting in more golfers being in fairway bunkers. Is that a exclusive scoop I got or what?

At dinner that night, Ed, Mark, John and I (my housemates at the Golfweb House) made pool selections. We picked 4 golfers, with one of them having to be a long shot. My picks are Norman, Love (I did it out of loyalty to our nice conversation), Couples, and my long shot is Zinger. I don't think Zinger stands a chance because he is burdened with the Dan King curse. Anyone I watch in a practice round never does well in the tournament proper. But he looked like about the best of the 100 to 1 or worse odds players. I also wasn't wild about the number of Americans on my team, but went with the best available athlete theory. My real pick to win the Open this year...Craig Parry. Unfortunately he wasn't long enough odds to be considered a long shot. He's 66 to 1. My bet is that the winner will be someone from the southern hemisphere.

Royal Lytham and St. Annes could play very tough this week. Many of the fairways are pinched very tight with bunkers on both sides. The rough isn't too tough off the fairway, making the bunkers the primary hazard. Royal Lytham and St. Annes is a links land course, but you never actually see the sea. It's a good two or three blocks over, with a residential neighborhood between the course and the sea. I climbed a bleacher near the 8th green, and from on-top there I could see the sea. I could also see the Big Dipper at Blackpool from there. I'll have t get over there sometime this week to compare Blackpool's Dipper to Santa Cruz's.

The course is routed mostly straight out, southeast along a railway line. All the outward holes border the line except for 4, 5 and 6, which divert off to the middle of the course. From the par-3 9th, we head back toward the clubhouse in the northwest, with some south to north diversions. There are three par-5s, two of them back to back, 6th and 7th. The 6th is the easiest of the 3, and there should be a number of eagles on that one. There are 4 par-3s, making the par total 71. Three of the par-3s are on the front, the 1st, 5th and 9th.

Below is my impression of the holes from walking the course this morning. By the time this is read, most papers will have something similar, but what the heck, I've done it for other courses I've played. I'll try to consider the pros game rather than my own in this hole-by-hole analysis.

Hole#1 206 yard par-3
Kind of strange starting a linksland course on a par-3. Many of the old designers start out with a fairly easy hole because of lack of practice facilities. Here we start out with a demanding par-3. 10 bunkers surround this hole. Three of these should never come into play on the hole. The green is slightly crowned, so shots toward the outward part of the green will fall away to the bunkers. Shots long are probably better, but still can leave a difficult up and down from below the putting surface.

Hole#2 437 yard Par-4
A fairly straight away par-4, until near the green where it is set at an angle to the left. Best drive is down the right side, away from the two bunkers on the left. There are bunkers down the right that are slightly hidden, but should give the pros no trouble. The problem going down the right is that is where the rail line is, and there are trees and long rough between the fairway and the railway line. The green is sloped left to right, making it even more important to be on the right side of the fairway.

Hole#3 457 yard Par-4
What's interesting about this hole is the longer you hit your driver, the narrower the landing area gets. At around 300 yards from the tee it narrows to no more than 15 yards between two fairway bunkers and the right rough. The green is crowned, with two bunkers, one on each side of the green. The slope is from left read to right front, so again, it is best to be on the right side of the fairway.

Hole#4 393 yard Par-4
A par here would be disappointing. We finally stop our outward trek, and briefly head back toward the clubhouse. The hole is a dogleg left. Most pros will be hitting long irons or fairway woods here, trying to keep the shot down the right side, giving a better angle to this green. The majority of the trouble is down the left, with the tougher greenside bunkers on the left side of the hole.

Hole#5 212 yard Par-3
Another tough par-3. From the tee it appears that a shot can be run up the green, avoiding the bunkers right and left. But for some reason, balls don't run through this shoot, dying before they reach the green. The better shot is too the green. If you roll over the green, from behind, the shot is a fairly easy up and down.

Hole#6 490 yard Par-5
I'm sure this hole will have the easiest stroke average on the course. Consider this hole is only 33 yards longer than the par-4 3rd hole. The hole is a dogleg to the left, with a fairway that slopes toward the right in the landing area. There are a series of 4 bunkers that can get in the way of those attempting to lay-up. Better to go for the green and take a chance with the 6 greenside bunkers.

Hole#7 553 yard Par-5
A much tougher par-5 than the previous one, with not just length to make it tougher. The nest tee shot is down the right, but the right is also littered with bunkers and sand dunes. The fairway does flatten out a bit at a little over 300 yards. The green is blind behind a ridge, with just the flag visible from the fairway. The slope around the green goes right to left, but caution here is needed to avoid the 4 bunkers on the right short of the green. The green is in an amphitheater, allowing the long hitters to have an easier time holding this green. You won't see nearly as many eagles here as on Hole#6, but my guess is their stroke average will be similar.

Hole#8 418 yard Par-4
The tee is slightly elevated, to a wide fairway below. Most players will be hitting a long-iron of fairway wood setting up the approach. The approach is the strength of this hole. The tee is elevated about 20 feet up, making this the highest point on the course. If there is wind, it will be tough to judge it from below in the fairway. The green in behind 3 large, nasty bunkers which are in reality 50 yards short of the green. This illusion makes club selection more difficult.

Hole#9 164 yard Par-3
If your going to birdie a par-3, this is your best opportunity. An elevated tee to a green surrounded by bunkers and then surrounded by suburbia beyond. 9 greenside bunkers surround this hole. Tendency is to miss long where no bunkers exist, but the slope falls away very quickly over the green.

Hole#10 334 yard Par-4
We are heading home and might as well start with a relatively easy hole. The tee shot is blind, over some dunes down the right side of the fairway. The majority of golfers will be hitting an iron off this tee. If you can remain on the right side, the approach to this green is easier. However, the slope of the fairway is to the left. The green slopes from back left to front right, making approaching from the left more difficult. Someone during the tournament, if needing a wake-up call on the back-9 will drive this green.

Hole#11 542 yard Par-5
A dogleg left par-5. To reach this green in two, the drive must be down the left, getting beyond the groves of trees protecting the corner. The conservative, three shot route is down the right side. There are a few bunkers protecting this hole, but nothing the pros should not be able to negotiate. A good drive down the left and green light. A drive down the right, and lay-up for a simple approach.

Hole#12 198 yard Par-3
A deceptive hole. The tee is protected by trees so the golfers can determine wind direction easily. The green is raised and the tee shot must clear the 4 bunkers fronting the green. There are two nasty sand bunkers on the left ready to catch those greedy enough to go for a left pin placement. The green is shallow, only about 25 yards from front to back. A front pin placement brings a swale at the front into play.

Hole#13 342 yard Par-4
The final of the really good birdie opportunities. Hopefully you have a decent score when you finish this hole. Staying at level-4s for the final 5 holes will be a real challenge. The best tee shot here is with a long iron or fairway wood down the left side. The slope of the green is left to right, making a shot from the right much easier to get close to a pin. The green is long and narrow. There are 14 sand bunkers on this hole, but the pros should only really be worried about the 5 green side bunkers.

Hole#14 445 yard Par-4
Now the fun begins. For the next 5 holes, try to hold onto the score you made for the previous 13 holes. The remaining holes are all par-4s, and the closer you can remain to level-4s the better your chances are. None of these holes are what you would call birdie opportunities, though some fortune golfer will make a few on these on Sunday and get thrown into contention. 14 is a straight par-4, but best to keep the drive down the left, most of the heavier rough is on the right. The green is fairly flat and easily accessible, but care is important with O.B. right no more than 15 yards from the putting surface.

Hole#15 463 yards Par-4
A fairly simple driving hole. The hole is a slight dogleg t the right. The tee shot is best over the dunes down the right to a blind landing area. Hit the slope correctly, and you can add 50 or so yards to your drive. The peanut shaped green is difficult one to hold, with many hot shots hitting short and running right through the green.

Hole#16 357 yard Par-4
Don't count on playing this hole like Seve Ballesteros (parking lot incident of 1979). Hit a long iron off the tee, and a short iron to the middle of the long narrow green and walk away with a good par. Get to greedy on your approach to tucked pins and you can end up in some of the nastiest little pots on the course. There are 7 of them that surround this green.

Hole#17 467 yard Par-4
A dogleg right, with a very nasty right corner. Here is where Bobby Jones did in Al Waltrous with a shot from these nasty left side bunkers onto the green. Best not to even consider trying to play this hole like Bobby. Best play your tee shot down the right side of the fairway and accept the fact you'll be hitting a long iron into this green. Golfers should only go visit the left side to take a look at the plaque dedicated to Bobby Jones' shot.

Hole#18 414 yard Par-4
Don't get greedy here (unless you must to catch a player in the clubhouse on Sunday). A par here is going to usually be a good score. Better to lay-up short on your tee shot rather than trying to hit out of one of the 7 fairway bunkers. The landing area continuously gets narrower the further up the fairway you go. Hit a fairway wood short of most of these bunkers and accept the fact you'll be hitting more club into this kidney shaped green. The green is well bunkers, but remember it is easier to get up and down from a greenside bunker than making par from a fairway bunker.

Talk to you tomorrow.

Dan King

Back to Scotland on my Mind Home Page