The 16th at Oakland Hills
The field for this week's 90th USPGA Championship are in agreement, Oakland Hills will provide one heck of a test.
Traditionally the season's final major has been seen as perhaps the fairest of all four with the opportunity for low scoring should you bring your 'A' game - certainly in comparison to US Open et al.
However, the PGA of America look like they have decided to bite back and Oakland Hills is going to take some taming this time around.
At 7395 yards it has been lengthened to ensure distance will be a key weapon with two of the par-threes over 235 yards.
But it's not just the length, major lay-outs are getting longer with each passing tournament. No, length is no surprise, but the USPGA this year will provide the same kind of challenges more usually associated with it's big bad cousin the US Open.
The rough around Oakland Hills has become so penal as to stand on a par with anything the US Open or Open Championship offered this year. If you're a long way off line you're in big trouble.
And then there are greens which hold more contours than just about any other course going - Augusta included.
The combination of factors has left the players in no doubt that they are in for a tough week.
"This has the potential to play as the hardest major," Mike Weir said. "And that's never the case. Usually of the four majors, if you played your best, you could score here. Now you could play great and 70 might be awesome."
"This is as tough of a setup as I've ever seen," Steve Stricker added.
Padraig Harrington's view: "The usual setup for the PGA is more like a tough US tour event. It's nearly more US Open-type than the US Open is at the moment, if that makes any sense. It's actually like they switched the two of them around this year."
Geoff Ogilvy's take on the rough stuff: "It doesn't seem long because you've just come from Birkdale, but it's four inches, and thick enough. If you're more than 100 yards, you're not going to get to the green from too many lies."
Difficult yes, but still fair was Adam Scott's opinion, although the Australian concedes there could be some high numbers in the offing from Thursday.
"I can see some good scores," Scott said. "But I can see it going the other way, too."
The final word goes to 2002 USPGA champion Rich Beem, having taken on the 18th during practice he was in no doubt as to the challenge that lies ahead.
"This is the hardest hole I've ever played. And it just got harder."
