Back in 2002, only Tiger broke par.  Currently, quite a few of these guys are under par (at the moment, Tiger is not one of them), and they're doing it despite this incredibly lousy weather here in New York.  How could the pros have improved so much in just 7 years?  Did they somehow make the course easier?  

The last time I played golf was when I was 19 (back in the days of the dinosaurs).  I quit forever the day I played the Black course.  Back then, and maybe even today, keeping score was not adding up the total strokes needed to go around the course.  No sir, not on the Black course.  Keeping score was how many holes you played before you stopped counting - period!  The Black course was a bitch, but it put a quick end to my golfing career, and probably saved me tons of money in the long run!

but give these guys soft greens and they can stop a 4 iron on a dime. Hard and fast greens are the only defense the pros can struggle with outside of the weather.

The PGA did not make the course easier....mother nature did. No course is too hard for these guys with soft greens, not even the Black Course.

You are lucky you quit the game. To sum it up, I will quote two professional athletes. I honestly don't remember the pro golfer that said "I hate this game....and I can't wait to play again tomorrow" but I do remember the quote from The Round Mound of Rebound (Charles Barkley)....."Golf and sex are the only two things you can do poorly and still have a good time!"

-- Modified on 6/20/2009 4:14:15 PM

Don't know about that.......

....lots of complaints about not being able to wipe mud off of the balls.  Sounds like baseball players complaining about bad hops....

I read that after all the compalints last itme - the PGA had Bethpage cut the rough down so it wasn't so deep.  They actually angled it from the 1st cut up.  

You are correct that the biggest difference in scoring is being able to hit to the pin.

As mentioned, the rain is actually helping. The greens are very receptive, and it will be difficult if not impossible to get a 14 on the stimpmeter.
The fairways are treating the guys well by being so soft. On some of them there is almost no roll, and drives that would normally be running off the fairways and into the rough are staying on.
Regardless, Bethpage Black is still claiming it's share of victims.

Pretty amazing weekend but I don't think I've ever seen so many putts miss the hole that closely!