Editor's Note: This exclusive editorial content is made possible through a parternship with the Carolinas Golf Course Superintendents Association. The following dispatch is from Saturday, June 14.
That was a really good day, really good. To see the golf course get its teeth back was great, and it sure did. It was a lot more like what we saw Thursday and would have had, ideally, on Friday. Seeing putts rolling off the green on 14 showed just how small the margin for error was and that is what you want when you’re trying to find the national champion.
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It goes to show what a round of golf Martin Kaymer played. To overcome the trouble that he found on the fourth hole with his ball in a washout in the waste area was really something. It was unfortunate but it was a long way off the fairway and he played the rest of the hole really well to get out with a heck of a bogey. Then he hits an errant tee shot on the fifth and ends up making eagle. Wow.
I think one of the most gratifying aspects of the day was getting to see the variety of shots being played. I heard comments that the waste areas and wiregrass and so on is not as penal as the old rough. But there are only six players under par and, again, take out Martin Kaymer and it’s a very close race. Another round like today’s and who knows how few will end up in the red. Yet we are seeing so much more imagination and skill being executed by those guys who do miss the fairways.
I get to sort of piece together a picture of what’s happening with the play by being out on the course and catching some of it on TV back at the shop or at the Fair Barn, which is our staff and volunteer headquarters. I know I am not supposed to say this, but I get to see so much more on TV. And, honestly, I get chills up and down my arms when I see it on the screen, although you do get to see different stuff when you’re out there and you can watch one group for 10 minutes or so uninterrupted. And when you’re watching it on a television screen, you don’t get that sense of history being made right in front of your eyes and you’re in the thick of it.
We’ve had great support from the sponsors providing very good meals. And the chance for the guys to play some ping pong or pool or foosball in between shifts has been good to help build the camaraderie that you need when you working this hard. They thoroughly deserve it.
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It has been incredibly tiring but the adrenaline really does come into effect. There has been this kind of excitement in the background the whole time that I think has been, not just fun, but helpful for everyone. Some of our volunteer guys have to go back to their own courses after tomorrow’s set-up. They have been outstanding and I can’t thank them enough. We will have some new guys coming in for the Women’s Open. And I think the fresh faces, about 10 in all, will be good to help keep the energy level up.
Of course it remains to be seen when we get to make the transition from the men’s event to the women. The thought briefly crossed my mind after the second round when Martin Kaymer was six shots clear that it reduced the likelihood of a play off. But the gap has closed some and who knows what could happen in the final round. Truthfully, though we are well prepared for whatever happens.
I will say we had some controversy at the Fair Barn though during the day. It happened over ping pong, but the good news is that Kurt Proctor, our spray technician, and me resolved the issue by being too good as doubles partners against (assistant superintendent) Alan Owen and Kirk Allen, who is also a spray tech. No play off required there, thank you.
Trent Bouts contributed to this article.