CHASKA, MN—The bi-annual matches between Team USA and Europe is set to commence again this week. The Matches will be hosted by Hazeltine National Golf Club in Chaska, MN. The site has been host to numerous big time events -- including the 1970 and 1991 U.S. Opens and the ‘02 and ’09 PGA Championships. Four architects weigh in on the design elements of the course and what they believe will be crucial to this year’s event.
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MATT WARD: The American side will have control in setting up Hazeltine National for this year’s Ryder Cup Matches. If USA Captain Davis Love III asked for your recommendations, what counsel would you offer him?
GREG MARTIN: Wide fairways and long. I think the Euro’s have the advantage with creativity and recovery and I believe the US has an advantage with length.
KEVIN NORBY: My sense is that the American team might benefit by utilizing pin positions that are particularly difficult to read or offer some optical illusion. For instance, in 2010, when I helped oversee the reconstruction of the greens at Hazeltine, they expanded the back left of the 17th green and added a tricky pin position that many of these golfers will never have seen. The American team should be more familiar with these pin positions and might have additional time to familiarize themselves with the reads.
TOM MACKENZIE: Set up for maximum drama. Give the players options and choices. If that means avoiding some back tees then so be it.
JEFF BRAUER: I have always been a believe in the “they all play the same course” mentality. I have worked with a lot of tour pros, who have a “what if I hit it here?” mentality. but such a minute percentage of shots ends up in any one square foot of grass, so you can’t worry about it in detail. The only area all players are sure to see if the greens and the US squad hasn’t putted as well as the Euos in the last several matches. Maybe there is some potential there to select pins the US has had more time to practice for, but the Europeans will figure things out real quickly.
