Quote:
Originally Posted by Dr Winston O Boogie jr
The eighteenth hole of the Mission Inn course where they play the ANA Inspiration, one of their majors is a short par five with an island green. Most years they construct a sky box grandstand behind the green that prevents balls from going into the water over the green. This is simply a money grab giving the additional income preference to good, challenging and fair golf. Players can just pound their second shots into the green knowing the grandstand will stop it and they will get relief from a temporary immoveable obstruction.
It would be that difficult to construct the grandstand on the other side of the pond and allow the hole to be played as it was designed.
This year they went even beyond even that stupidity. Since there were no fans there was no need for a grandstand. But they built a wall where the grandstand would normally go to prevent balls from going over and into the water.
This year's event came down to the final hole. Mirim Lee was two shots behind. She hit her second shot into the wall, got a drop and chipped in to tie. Brook Henderson was one shot back. She hit her second shot so far over the green that it went under the wall and again got relief and got up and down for birdie to tie.
Admittedly, Nellie Korda who was leading did not play the hole well. She hit her drive into the left rough and had to lay up. She then hit a terrible wedge to 30 feet from where she two putted for par. But if it hadn't been for the wall, that would have been all she needed.
This would be like putting a wall or grandstand behind the 15th green at Augusta National.
I hope that in the future they see the error of their ways as build the sky boxes across the pond and allow the hole to be played as the designers intended. They would still receive the revenue from the sky boxes but insure a more fair outcome of the tournament.
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It was still a great tournament as most of the LPGA games are. Their game is closer to our game. Though I still can't hit a 241 yard second shot to the green
