Wednesday
With the Open starting tomorrow, much talk around Hoylake now is of the course and how it will play. To understand these links, one must grasp the essence of both its topography – the combination of flat holes and those threading through the dunes – and its weather, meaning the strength of the wind that blows in from the Irish Sea. The wind will make all the difference, particularly on the two par 3 holes on the back nine, 13 and 17, the latter of which – called “Little Eye” – is a controversial new hole.
To the inexperienced eye, flat holes may appear as lacking something. That, however, is a gravely mistaken notion. The pot bunkers, the tee shot angles and the greens on these holes are terrifying. As such, the players must not so much outwit the holes as confront them and conquer them, as an exorcist must confront a demon. Hoylake demands more than a tranquil mind and a sense of shot discipline; it also requires a player to discover new levels of courage. What was it that Plato – who probably would’ve played a lot of golf had the game existed in his age – said of this quality in man? “Courage is knowing what not to fear.”
But it’s the duneland holes that provide the visual sense of being at The Open. Wherein lies the mystique, the attraction to the eye of grassy dunes? Two aspects stand out: first, the beauty of their irregularity, especially so in a world obsessed with industrial-scale conformity, whether it be the satanic banality of modern city design or the endless chains of identical retail stores; and second, the sheer fact that dunes are created by nature, or by God. Any fool – or deluded greens committee – can plant a grove of trees. But dunes remain beyond the capacity of human beings. Perhaps that’s why their appearance so entrances us golfers.
So, who will conquer Hoylake to lift the claret jug on Sunday? If you ask me to profess a settled conviction on this question, I can only say no such conviction yet exists. The turf will be far softer than at St Andrews last year, so the driving won’t be so perilous. Maybe that will grant an advantage to those most skilled with the putter, and that category most definitely includes a certain fellow from Brisbane still seeking a decent barber shop. Two in a row is eminently possible.
Andrew Thomson is the son of five-time Open Championship winner Peter Thomson. You can read more from Andrew here.
