We get to see a new ‘old’ course on the rotation this year. We’re used to seeing the names St. Andrews, Muirfield, and something with a Royal on the front of it. The 2006 British Open will be contended on another Royal course, but it is known as something else.
Royal Liverpool Golf Club is the official name of the course commonly called “Hoylake.” The British Open was last played there in 1967 and is back after a 39-year absence. There aren’t many numbers out there to research, but there were a few things about Hoylake and the British Open to consider in this week’s The Numbers Game.
Rotation Numbers
Given the obscurity of Hoylake to the present golf fans, you would think that it hasn’t been used as a site for the British Open very often. Well, you (and I) would be wrong. So which courses are at the top of the list? Take a look:
St Andrews 27 Prestwick 24 Muirfield 15 Royal St. George's 13 Hoylake, Royal Lytham 10 Royal Birkdale, Royal Troon 8 Musselburgh, Carnoustie 6 Turnberry 3 Deal 2 Royal Portrush, Prince's 1
It has been 39 years since Hoylake hosted a British Open and it only came back when the course upgraded its parking and hospitality facilities. No surprise with St. Andrews at the top. It will continue to be at the top after it passed Prestwick a while back. Prestwick, the inaugural course for the British Open, hasn’t held the championship since 1925. After the top grouping, some familiar courses like Muirfield and Royal Lytham start appearing.
I was actually surprised to see that Hoylake was so high on the list. For a course that not many people have heard of, including tour pros, Hoylake will be alone in fifth place after this year’s championship. The question is, will it earn it’s spot in the rotation on a permanent basis?
Equality
Often in The Numbers Game, I’m talking about how there is a difference in numbers and factors. In no other major are there things that are similar between golf courses. First is the famous, or more appropriately the infamous, weather on the British Isles. No matter where you go, the wind will surely be there. There might be a day or two where it is down a bit and tame, but you know there is going to be a round of 150-yard 5-irons. We’ve been spared from the rain in recent years… it seems to affect Wimbledon more that the British Open. Still, raingear is always at the ready.
The conditions also seem to be the same between courses. You have dry, fast fairways and smooth but firm greens. A lot of bump and run is played not only from around the green but up to 150 yards away. For Americans, this usually the only time we get to see this style of golf. Deep bunkers and tall, wispy grass also define the British Open. Hoylake, St. Andrews, it doesn’t matter the course… you know exactly what you are going to see.
Stiff Test?
It is hard to even speculate what kind of numbers are going to be put up this week at Hoylake. Jack seems to think that because of technology (go figure), the course may play really easy and that scoring records might be broken.
He isn’t the only one. Ron Whitten of Golf Digest also thinks the same thing. He sites that even with out of bounds on 10 different holes, it really doesn’t come into play and that a 44-year-old with “marshmallow balls and balsa-wood drivers” was able to shoot 10 under, breaking par every round (Roberto de Vicenzo, 1967). The conditions were tame that week so it is hard to imagine what it would have been (or will be) like if a stiff wind is in the forecast.
Because of this, the course could play much different than it did in 1967. Looking through a few records, Hoylake could pose a stiff test.
Since 1946 Hoylake twice had the fewest total rounds under 70. Five times in the British Open Hoylake had only two people break 70 the entire tournament. I know they were using balsa wood, but still, Hoylake didn’t play so easy compared to current Open courses.
Also, the all time worst round by a champion was 78. It was carded by Fred Daly in the third round of the British Open in 1947. Again, the balsa wood was being used but it was also used at other courses in the rotation as well and never had a round been shot by a winner since then and we know there have been some nasty days on the British Isles.
It is really hard to say what is going to happen this week. I can’t ever remember a major being played with such doubt surrounding the winning score. I think the O.B. will come into play a bit more than people think with some wind and the higher ball flights that guys are sporting today. Some of the players trying to cut the doglegs might run into problems. Whether or not that holds off record scores remains to be seen.