PGA Championship: What the players had to say about the revamped Quail Hollow
Last Updated: 13/08/17 6:26pm
The changes to the course at Quail Hollow were the subject of much debate before and during last week's PGA Championship.
A tournament was last staged at the venue in May 2016 and a number of major alterations were made as the course prepared to host its first major.
A type of grass called Champion Ultradwarf Bermudagrass was installed on the greens at the Charlotte venue in place of the old bentgrass, thousands of trees were removed from around the course and amendments were made to four of the holes.
The professionals were generally content with the changes, although they admitted it now presented a tough test.
Here is what some of the leading players had to say about the course during the tournament at Quail Hollow:
Rory McIlroy: This is not the Quail Hollow we have gotten to know over the last 10 years. It's a completely different golf course. Even if they didn't do anything else with the golf course and just changed it to full Bermuda like it is now, all of a sudden makes the golf course two shots more difficult. Just with the lies that you get in the rough, trickiness around the greens.
And the greens are as firm as I've ever seen, probably any greens at a PGA Championship. That makes things difficult, as well. Yeah, it's definitely playing a few shots harder than it usually is, and it's a major championship; it should be.
Jordan Spieth: It's certainly a major venue. I played it in 2013, when it had bentgrass I thought it was fantastic. That was the year they lost the greens. The set-up was fantastic. The changes are pretty good. I think there's quite a few tournaments coming back here. If you don't fall in love with it right away, you need to.
Rickie Fowler: It's a good test out there. You're going to have to play well. You can't fake it around here. I mean, the biggest thing is stay in the moment, staying patient. But it's a lot easier said than done.
To face the first, really three holes here, it's not easy. If you don't drive it well on the first, you're kind of behind the eight-ball and if you don't do the same on two and three, it can start you off in the wrong direction pretty quickly. It's a major championship. You want it to play tough. You want tough pin placements in the right spots. I think they have done a good job of that.
Phil Mickelson: It's a little different golf course than what we've played in the past. One of reasons I've played so well here is because there's no rough. Here there is some severe rough. Coupled with the fact that I hit the ball above the hole most of the time, that wasn't a good combination.
Patrick Reed: It's a little different. I think the biggest thing the rough is as thick as I've seen it out here. Compared to the previous years at Quail when we're playing Wells Fargo, it's thick but it's not like it is here right now. The other thing is the even though the greens are so pure, they are so fast. It's hard to keep yourself below the hole.
Tommy Fleetwood: The course is brutal, really. It's a really tough test. Anything par or beating the course is a great score. The greens are the toughest test because they are firm. The course is quite long and then the greens are firm and quite slopey.
Sometimes it's so hard to hit greens. You can hit a good shot and just miss the green, and on top of that, the rough around the green just makes it hard to chip. There's not a let-up, really. You've never got one shot where you kind of feel you can go easy for 10 minutes or you have a little rest. It's just five hours of real tough golf.
Kevin Kisner: I've had success at Quail before. I look forward to coming here. Obviously it's close to home and I love the greens. I just wasn't sure what they were going to do with the changes.
So I came up a month ago and played, and it was raining and wet, and I said, man, this place is going to be so long; I don't know how they are going to compete. But it's been drying out and my tee balls are getting some roll and I'm hitting a lot less irons into the greens than I expected. If I can get a six or seven iron in my hand, I like my chances around here.
Louis Oosthuizen: It's the type of golf course you don't have to go out and make birdies. You just need to keep everything together.
JB Holmes: Overall, the changes are pretty good other than the green on four. If it's softer, it's not as bad. But that back half, when it gets firm, I mean, you can hit a great shot and it just kicks over the green into the tall stuff.
Overall, I think they did a good job. I think I'd like to see them redo that green again, make that a little bit better. But in general, I feel like they made the golf course a little bit harder and they made it a little bit better.
Jon Rahm: Given they are Bermuda greens, for me they are extremely difficult. The fact that how firm they got and the length of the golf course is extremely tough. I mean, if the fairways weren't as soft when we have shorter irons into the green, we would be able to control it a little more. The ball is releasing 15 feet. I don't think I have ever seen that besides a US Open or The Open.
Brooks Koepka: With some of the pin locations, these greens are the fastest greens I've ever played. Hit the ball really well and drive the ball really well and put the ball in the fairway. That's what you need to do out here.
DA Points: It's super challenging. Any missteps are magnified, which is how majors are.
Webb Simpson: I could tell starting a few weeks back they were growing the rough up. I don't know if the intent was to make it this difficult, but it's really hard. With some of the pins and tees and length of the course, it feels like a US Open. We are dealing with a long golf course, tons of rough, and crazy fast greens.
I don't think historically that's the stereotype of a PGA Championship. I feel like I'm out there trying to survive. Similar feelings to how when I play a US Open. You shoot even par, you have done really well. In past PGAs even par is not that good. It's definitely something to get used to.
