BLOOMFIELD HILLS, Mich. – Before the rains came to halt third-round play and turn Oakland Hills into an 18-hole sponge, Andres Romero proved the storied course isn’t as difficult as everyone is making it out to be.
The course can be had by a player whose swing is precise and whose conviction strong enough to endure a few setbacks. Mix in a hot putter and you come up with the antidote to harnessing the Monster.
You come up with the kind performance Romero put together yesterday morning at the PGA Championship.
The 27-year-old Argentinean made the most of his 10:10 a.m. tee time, posting seven birdies against two bogeys for a 5-under par 65, equaling the competitive course record on the South Course. He also moved to 2-over-par and has a shot to win this championship.
Eight other golfers, including Jack Nicklaus in the 1991 U.S. Senior Open and most recently Tom Lehman at the 1996 U.S. Open, have needed just 65 strokes in a competitive round at Oakland Hills. But no one was expected to post that number in a year where some were calling this the most difficult course ever in a major championship.
The course averages for the first two rounds were 74.85 and 74.84 respectively, leaving J.B. Holmes as the only player under par entering yesterday’s rain-shortened third round.
The players’ complaints that the course was too difficult began during Thursday’s opening round. After shooting a 77, England’s Lee Westwood accused the PGA of “sucking the fun out of the major championships when you set it up like that.”
Such comments are normally reserved for the U.S. Open, which takes pride in making the world’s best golfers miserable. The PGA always was considered the kinder, gentler major, where birdies were plentiful and the winner was under par.
But until yesterday’s rain, the Monster was hardened by wind, warm temperatures and clear skies, turning the year’s last major into a “par is good” snooze-fest.
That hasn’t been good for a tournament missing its two-time defending champion Tiger Woods, who is out for the year with knee surgery. With the Olympics and preseason football in full swing, the PGA needs something to capture the attention of the sporting public, and Greg Norman isn’t around.
This was supposed to be the time with other golfers step out of Woods’ shadow and prove they’ve got game, too. But until Romero’s 65 yesterday, we’ve mostly seen the kind of cautious, conservative play that makes for a good nap. Thanks to Romero, we know it doesn’t have to always be like that. Not if you’re willing to risk losing by trying to win.
Saturday is supposed to be moving day at a major tournament. Romero didn’t wait for an invitation.
He two-putted for birdie on the second hole, a par-5; shrugged off a bogey at No. 3, and finished the front with birdies at the par-4 6th, the par-4 7th and the par-3 9th, where he hit a 3-iron to within two meters. A birdie at the par-4 10th was his fourth in five holes and birdies at 14 and 16 erased a bogey at the 15th.
All this came from someone who shot a 78 on Friday, including an eight at the par-4 16th where he put two balls in the water.
Fittingly after his round yesterday Romero had only good things to say about the course. “I think the set-up is perfect,” he said with a grin. “I like it very much.”
Clearly, Oakland Hills doesn’t have to be as difficult as it’s being made out to be. And today the Monster is a sponge.