Rain could soften Quail Hollow's edge

CHARLOTTE, N.C. - Steve Rintoul, the PGA Tour official in charge of setting up the Quail Hollow Club for this week's Wachovia Championship, looked at the damp, gray sky hanging over the rain-drenched golf course Monday afternoon and said, "Firm and fast sounded good last week."

That was before approximately three inches of rain fell on Quail Hollow Sunday and Monday, dramatically altering the lush layout players will find for their practice rounds today.

Rintoul and other tournament officials remain hopeful that they can get the course back to the drier, firmer conditions they had before the heavy rain arrived.

The intention is to have Quail Hollow play differently than in previous years if the conditions allow it. The rough will be trimmed to 2 1/2 inches in depth, about one inch shorter than in recent years.

The trade-off is harder, faster putting surfaces that force players to be more careful with their approach shots into greens.

"We'll stick to our guns and won't change our philosophy in terms of course set-up," Rintoul said. "We'll get what we can from the greens."

Despite the soaking rain, Quail Hollow's greens can recover quicker because they have a SubAir system built underneath the greens. The system pulls moisture from the ground, allowing the greens to handle heavy rain without seriously impacting the playing conditions.

Rintoul said the greens will also be double-cut and rolled each tournament day to further enhance their speed and firmness. The forecasted breezy conditions today also should help to begin drying the course.

"Obviously, they won't be where they were before we had two days of rain," Rintoul said.

Green speeds at Quail Hollow typically run at or slightly above 12 on the stimpmeter, club president Johnny Harris said. Tour officials have kept them slightly slower during the Wachovia Championship but intend to push the speed higher this year.

The adjustment in the rough is intended to give players more opportunities to reach greens if their tee shots are off line. With a moderate amount of rough, players can more easily advance the ball but sacrifice a measure of control.

"They'll feel like they can play out of the rough, but it will be a test for them," Rintoul said.

The damp fairways will make Quail Hollow play longer than its 7,442 yards, but there are no plans to adjust the set-up to make the course play shorter. Harris said Quail Hollow spent more than $150,000 last year to install new drainage for problem areas, which should help the course this week.

Rintoul said length becomes an issue in course set-up only if high winds are forecast. With balls likely to run less on the fairways, only the longer hitters might be able to reach some of the par-5 holes in two shots.

If the encouraging weather forecast holds, Quail Hollow could be close to where officials want it for the weekend.

"I think we're going to be right on," Harris said.

Provider:
Knight-Ridder / Tribune Business News / Charlotte Observer, The (NC)