U.S. Open (Golf) Fan Guide 2015

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6 1 1 5 T H U . S . O P E N C H A M B E R S B A Y Friday, June 12, 2015 • Thenewstribune.com/Entertainment Open will be truly unique Expect golfers to get emotional over the fescue at Chambers Bay as grass tests their mettle Particular care has been paid in getting the fine fescue grasses at Chambers Bay on the greens, roughs and fairways ready for the U.S. Open. A member of the groundskeeping staff used his thumbs to make adjustments on a very small scale on one of the greens. DEAN J. KOEPFLER Staff photographer Fescue. Learn the word, and prepare yourself to hear it more than you could ever imagine if you’re going to pay attention to the U.S. Open coming to University Place next week. Fescue is the name of the grass prevalent at Chambers Bay, the 18 holes of scenic hell that will test the world’s greatest players in America’s national championship. Professional golfers aren’t accustomed to playing on a fescue surface, nor on links-style dune courses this side of the British Isles. And they’ve never seen a U.S. Open course this See OPEN,7 DAVE BOLING
7 1 1 5 T H U . S . O P E N C H A M B E R S B A Y OPEN From 6 long, nor one anywhere close to this corner of the country. These unique qualities will draw a viewing constituency broader than those who tune in every weekend, so a primer is in order for those still learning their poa annua from creeping bentgrass. Chambers Bay is atypical in so many ways. Opens are customarily held at established, traditional country clubs. Chambers is a public course and county-owned. It’s a course you can play on, and a tournament you can actually play in, if you could make it through qualifying rounds. It is further unheard of for a course to be hosting a major tournament just eight years after its opening. Before the 2007 opening, the land was a derelict gravel quarry, a post-industrial eyesore that overlooked resort-quality views. Some county visionaries sold the idea of using public funds to build a course that would attract big-time tournaments. The site alone couldn’t do it. The course had to be unique, and the sandy soil along the Tacoma Narrows seemed appropriate for a golf links. You’ll hear “links” as often as “fescue.” It’s the kind of place where Scottish shepherds first used crooked sticks to coax dried sheep dung into rabbit holes. They typically were on sandy terrain on the banks of stormy and unpredictable waters, and covered by untended sea grasses sparsely grown across the dunes. When asked his interest in developing the site, course designer Robert Trent Jones Jr. first wanted to know about the wind. There had to be wind. Lots of wind. He was asked if he’d ever seen the video from 1940 showing a bridge quivering and collapsing in a gale. Well, that’s where we are. “OK, that’ll do,” he responded. But most links courses don’t have the terrain of Chambers Bay, which climbs from the beach up the side of the cliff overlooking the Sound. The walk is such that fitness could become a factor separating contenders on the final 18 holes on Father’s Day. Because of the swales and ridges of the dunes, the course forces golfers to use creative techniques. They often can’t use the high approach to the pin because the greens won’t hold the ball, so they must hit the ball along the ground and ride the contours of the aprons and greens. And hope the fescue rolls true. Yes, the fescue will be an issue. It’s called “fine fescue,” to be exact. It has a dormant period in the winter and is hard to maintain. American professionals are accustomed to the thick, lush fairways and perfect greens of traditional courses. Some will not find fescue to their liking. Chambers is spread across 230 acres, compared to the 87 acres of Scotland’s St. Andrews. But that’s hardly 230 acres of playable surface. Much of it is considered “waste area.” These are places that are left as they were in the days when Fred Flintstone worked at the quarry. They are not strictly hazards or bunkers, just rocky, forbidding places from which to mine a golf ball. You also might wish to learn some of the phrases that golfers will be heard saying to their golf balls while challenging Chambers. For instance: ■ Bite: This will be shouted at the golf ball when it is heading straight toward a pin even though the golfer knows it will hit hard and end up closer to Fox Island than the cup. ■ Get legs: This is a plea for the ball to reach the fairway while flying over the vast waste areas. ■ Be right: This is in the hope that an approach shot will land on the tiny sweet spot on the green that will not reject it. An example: In a test-run for this Open, Chambers played host to the U.S. Amateur in 2010. On the first hole, earnest amateurs fired their drives into Position A on the fairway and lofted their approaches in the typical lawn-dart style, high, with backspin, close to the flagstick. And one after another, they watched their golf balls funnel off the green and end up a full wedge shot away from the cup. Many of them, at the time, screamed “Fescue!” Or at least it sounded something like “Fescue.” To avoid that, they’ll hit bump-and-run chips, or even use the putter from the fairway. On some holes, the smart ones will intentionally hit to it a sidehill, or off an incline at the back of the green, and play the roll, the bounce, the ricochet. The nightly highlights will entertain. The thought, then, is that those who will contend in this tournament are those with some creative vision, while those who fail will be the stubborn who attempt to play Chambers as if it were Oakmont or Winged Foot. And those who struggle, whose golf balls refuse to bite or get legs at the appropriate time, will turn accusatory eyes toward their caddies, who not only shoulder the bags, but also the blame for the pros’ errant shots. It will make fantastic theater, on a unique stage. What got this place in the rotation far sooner than expected was not only its unusual qualities, but the stunning views that will be broadcast to the world every day. There’s only one tree on the course, and it will be the most televised tree in golf history. And late in the rounds, the evening June sun will show golden across the stark terrain, and the remnant gravel bunkers alongside No. 18 fairway will cast shadows like something the Druids created. It will be a test of golf unlike any other. Certainly the best show on fescue. Dave Boling: 253-597-8440 dave.boling@thenewstribune.com @DaveBoling A member of the groundskeeping staff at Chambers Bay spent his early morning hours cutting and sculpting one of the greens on the north part of the course. DEAN J. KOEPFLER Staff photographer U.S. OPEN SCHEDULE AT CHAMBERS BAY FRIDAY Merchandise on sale from 10 a.m.-6 p.m. (no ticket necessary) SATURDAY Merchandise on sale from 10 a.m.-6 p.m. (no ticket necessary) SUNDAY Merchandise on sale from 10 a.m.-6 p.m. (no ticket necessary) MONDAY Practice rounds, gates open from 6 a.m.-7 p.m. TUESDAY Practice rounds, gates open from 6 a.m.-7 p.m. WEDNESDAY Practice rounds, gates open from 6 a.m.-7 p.m. THURSDAY First round, gates open from 6 a.m.-conclusion JUNE 19 Second round, gates open from 6 a.m.-conclusion JUNE 20 Third round, gates open from 6 a.m.-conclusion JUNE 21 Fourth round, gates open from 6 a.m.-conclusion JUNE 22 Playoff, if necessary, gates would open at 7 a.m. Friday, June 12, 2015 • Thenewstribune.com/Entertainment
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U.S. Open (Golf) Fan Guide 2015

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