• The KillerFrogs

The Masters: predictions

JogginFrog

Active Member
I don't fault Dye--without him, there would be no Coore or Doak. Most of his courses are great for match play--less so if you're trying to post a score and aren't a pro. As an 80ish golfer I think I shot 96 at Sawgrass, but I felt like a hero at least 6 times that round.

Dye asks, "Here's the challenge. Can you meet it?" Doak asks, "What do you think the challenge is here?" Both offer a terrific experience.

(For what it's worth, ZBoaz asked, "How low can you go?" And for some, the answer was New Orleans Nights.)
 

westtexfrog

Active Member
Talking about great golf courses and their designers look no further than our own Colonial and it’s principle designer, Perry Maxwell. Born in Kentucky, grew up in Ardmore, Oklahoma, Maxwell contributed Colonial, Southern Hills, Prairie Dunes and perhaps his favorite Dornick Hills in Ardmore. He is buried just off the 7th fairway on the Dornick Hills (geologic formation) outcrop in Ardmore. It is an amazing layout and a fun course to play. If you ever have the chance to play it don’t pass the opportunity up. Maxwell also contributed to major redesign to Augusta National a few short years (3 or 4 yrs) after it opened. Tough, shot maker courses that rewarded great shots but were also forgiving and fun.
 

BrewingFrog

Was I supposed to type something here?
Talking about great golf courses and their designers look no further than our own Colonial and it’s principle designer, Perry Maxwell. Born in Kentucky, grew up in Ardmore, Oklahoma, Maxwell contributed Colonial, Southern Hills, Prairie Dunes and perhaps his favorite Dornick Hills in Ardmore. He is buried just off the 7th fairway on the Dornick Hills (geologic formation) outcrop in Ardmore. It is an amazing layout and a fun course to play. If you ever have the chance to play it don’t pass the opportunity up. Maxwell also contributed to major redesign to Augusta National a few short years (3 or 4 yrs) after it opened. Tough, shot maker courses that rewarded great shots but were also forgiving and fun.
He also did the Hermann Park Course in Houston. It was recently re-done, but I haven't played down there since the re-do.
 

westtexfrog

Active Member
He also did the Hermann Park Course in Houston. It was recently re-done, but I haven't played down there since the re-do.
My youngest son lives in Houston and played it a few weeks ago and said course was in pretty good shape, but greens needed some TLC. He figured winter had a lot to do with their condition. BTW, I’m pretty sure Maxwell designed over 70 courses including Okla City Golf and Country Club.
 

Eight

Member
My youngest son lives in Houston and played it a few weeks ago and said course was in pretty good shape, but greens needed some TLC. He figured winter had a lot to do with their condition. BTW, I’m pretty sure Maxwell designed over 70 courses including Okla City Golf and Country Club.

good number of courses in this part of the world don't overseed the greens for the winter because winter only last a few hours

i know the back 9 of the cypresswood tradition course is closed as they are trying to get things back in order
 

BrewingFrog

Was I supposed to type something here?
Lot of places are going to be in trouble with greens from that winter storm and sod Is going to be hard to come by because sod farms also froze over. Gonna be interesting the next few weeks on winter kill.
It is very, very uncommon to see single-digit temperatures down on the Third Coast. I haven't really thought about the effects on golf courses, but, yeah.

I would think that the upcoming wave of 80+ temperatures and overnight lows above 60 will really kick grass growth into overdrive.
 

Eight

Member
It is very, very uncommon to see single-digit temperatures down on the Third Coast. I haven't really thought about the effects on golf courses, but, yeah.

I would think that the upcoming wave of 80+ temperatures and overnight lows above 60 will really kick grass growth into overdrive.

driving through north harris county today the number of palms that don't look like they are going to make it is pretty damn high.

never understood the attraction of them in a yard, but each to their own i guess
 

BrewingFrog

Was I supposed to type something here?
driving through north harris county today the number of palms that don't look like they are going to make it is pretty damn high.

never understood the attraction of them in a yard, but each to their own i guess
My Folks' place has some titanic palms out back around the pool. When I was visiting last week, I noticed the green of new growth peeking out from the top of the trunks. I had been worrying that the freeze had been deep enough to kill off even those old stalwarts, but they have hung on. Barely, but there is still life.

You can't have a decent pool without palm trees.
 

First Tee Frog

Active Member
It is very, very uncommon to see single-digit temperatures down on the Third Coast. I haven't really thought about the effects on golf courses, but, yeah.

I would think that the upcoming wave of 80+ temperatures and overnight lows above 60 will really kick grass growth into overdrive.
It will. 150 is your magic number for golf course Bermuda. High+low=150. With that said...there will be some winter kill from that storm. Soil temps got below freezing even on greens that had covers on them. Gonna be some sketchy Bermuda greens this year.
 

flyfishingfrog

Active Member
It will. 150 is your magic number for golf course Bermuda. High+low=150. With that said...there will be some winter kill from that storm. Soil temps got below freezing even on greens that had covers on them. Gonna be some sketchy Bermuda greens this year.
already replacing the fringe on most greens at Colonial and I am sure our Super is holding his breath to see how much grass starts to grow in the fairways and rough this week - going to be a long 7 weeks for his team I imagine...
 
I found it entertaining.

1. The first two editions of this tournament were almost polar opposites. The inaugural was a one-on-one battle between two players who both played Augusta National great (Kupcho's 67 made Fassi's 70 look average). This one featured 9 players with a legit chance to win on the back nine, and the course took a bite out of every one. For a while, each player at the top gave their lead away as fast as they got it.

2. I liked seeing pin positions that you hardly ever see at Augusta--the ones on 11 and 17 come to mind. Watching Kajatani double-bogey 17 to lose her lead was brutal.

3. I liked watching some of the misreads that resulted from players only having seen the course the day before. Gives you a sense of the challenges and optical illusions that you don't get as often from the pros.

4. Likewise the different driving angles that show up from the members' tees. Liked seeing Mehaffey cut the corner on 11...and the fairway bunkers on 18 gobbling up drives.

5. I partially fault Augusta National for Zhang's lost ball left off the tee on 13. Where were the marshals? During the Masters, they have multiple spotters over there--like the ones who found Sergio's ball in his 2017 win. And here's the crew that found Bryson's shot into the bushes beyond the 13th green last fall.


But no one could tell where Zhang's ball wound up? If it's verified in the hazard or unplayable, she takes a stroke, lays up, and probably doesn't make worse than six. Difference between T3 and solo first. If's and but's--but when a tournament swings on a lost ball by a player in the final group, it doesn't seem like a world-class tourney.

Good synopsis. Augusta is great because anything can happen any time on that back nine, even on the more benign looking holes like #14 and #17. Augusta has huge greens that play very, very small. This really showed up with the amateurs, who don't quite have the distance/direction control of the pros we usually see there. A shot one or two grooves down or up from center can be the difference between 3 and 6 on many holes on that back nine. The "anything can happen" atmosphere is why I think it's the best final nine in tournament golf. Sawgrass only has that on about 3 or 4 of the final nine.
 

flyfishingfrog

Active Member
Good synopsis. Augusta is great because anything can happen any time on that back nine, even on the more benign looking holes like #14 and #17. Augusta has huge greens that play very, very small. This really showed up with the amateurs, who don't quite have the distance/direction control of the pros we usually see there. A shot one or two grooves down or up from center can be the difference between 3 and 6 on many holes on that back nine. The "anything can happen" atmosphere is why I think it's the best final nine in tournament golf. Sawgrass only has that on about 3 or 4 of the final nine.
it was interesting how so many of the ladies play a draw and they really had a tough time with 18 tee shot...

has been a long time since the pros had to even consider that bunker but I do remember back in the day when that fairway bunker was a major obstacle during The Masters.

Was pretty refreshing to see the course play a little more like it did back in the days of persimmon woods and balata balls....
 

First Tee Frog

Active Member
A couple cool insights into Augusta. First is from Scott. Fawcett. He teaches course management and strategy. Has a number of your player clients.

https://birdiefire-decade.s3.amazon...+2020.pdf?mc_cid=54517ded56&mc_eid=41aa594791

second is a stats analyst breaking down who CAN win at Augusta. Obviously some of the guys who can will play poorly but since he’s been doing this article I don’t think a winner has come from outside of the group he has said have a shot. Gives some insight into what is required to play well there.

https://www.golfwrx.com/651239/the-...&utm_campaign=GolfWRX_OnSite&utm_content=main
 

First Tee Frog

Active Member
it was interesting how so many of the ladies play a draw and they really had a tough time with 18 tee shot...

has been a long time since the pros had to even consider that bunker but I do remember back in the day when that fairway bunker was a major obstacle during The Masters.

Was pretty refreshing to see the course play a little more like it did back in the days of persimmon woods and balata balls....

Draws are so prevalent in the women’s game that I was having a conversation with a very big school’s coach and she made the comment that any high level girl playing a cut made her take a little more notice because it’s so rare. If a junior girl is hitting a cut off the tee she thinks they’ve got a little higher ceiling.
 

Frog-in-law1995

Active Member
A couple cool insights into Augusta. First is from Scott. Fawcett. He teaches course management and strategy. Has a number of your player clients.

https://birdiefire-decade.s3.amazon...+2020.pdf?mc_cid=54517ded56&mc_eid=41aa594791

second is a stats analyst breaking down who CAN win at Augusta. Obviously some of the guys who can will play poorly but since he’s been doing this article I don’t think a winner has come from outside of the group he has said have a shot. Gives some insight into what is required to play well there.

https://www.golfwrx.com/651239/the-...&utm_campaign=GolfWRX_OnSite&utm_content=main

Props if he had Adam Scott on the “could win” list in 2013.
 

flyfishingfrog

Active Member
Draws are so prevalent in the women’s game that I was having a conversation with a very big school’s coach and she made the comment that any high level girl playing a cut made her take a little more notice because it’s so rare. If a junior girl is hitting a cut off the tee she thinks they’ve got a little higher ceiling.
you think that is because of the common use of the lower body to drive the move on a draw and shorter stature golfers tend to have a flatter plane vs using more upper body on a fade and taller golfers being more vertical?

Or is it just the need for more run by shorter hitters like it was back in my youth? although I am guessing that with the adjustments modern technology has made even for lower swing speeds - they are maximizing carry just like the male pros.

or is there some other reason why so many ladies are still working the ball right to left?
 
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