[PHOTO: David Cannon]
Ask any golfer and they will tell you the most nervous they get on a golf course is the first tee. The start of the adventure. Whether you’ve warmed up properly or not, the anticipation of what is ahead can be overwhelming.
RELATED: Ryan Peake receives dream group at Portrush, Aussie tee-times AEST
For the pros, it’s exactly the same. At the 2019 Open Championship at Royal Portrush, Rory McIlroy pulled his opening tee shot out-of-bounds and later admitted he was nervous and overwhelmed by the pressure and ovation he received that morning.
“I remember the ovation I got on the first tee on Thursday,” he told media on Monday, “and not being prepared for it or not being ready for how I was going to feel or what I was going to feel.”
McIlroy started his tournament that week with a quadruple-bogey 8, but he wasn’t alone in his struggles.
The first hole and specifically the first tee shot at Royal Portrush is possibly the most demanding in the Open rota.
Let me try and explain why.
RELATED: Getting to know Royal Portrush
The hole measures 421 yards (385 metres) from the championship tee and is flanked by out-of-bounds on both sides. While there is 70 paces of space between the out-of-bounds lines, the lack of a “safe side” offers no bail-out for opening tee shots. It was on the left that McIlroy missed six years ago, while the right side was once the boundary of the course.
The small, triangular plot of land to the right was originally not owned by Royal Portrush, but by a local man by the name of Hugh. When members would slice their balls from the first tee, they would say they were “hitting onto Hughie’s land”. The name stuck and thus, the hole is now named Hughie and the parcel of land is now used as a practice area.
Another factor in the challenge of the opening tee shot is the bunkers. Not necessarily their size or severity, but their positioning. When asked on Monday what he thought about the course, 2019 champion Shane Lowry was quick to point to the bunkers.
“I forgot how well bunkered it is,” he said. “There’s a lot of options off tees. You just have to go with what you feel. You’re going to see a lot of people hitting different clubs off different tees.”
And the first hole is a perfect example.
The first trap is 260 yards from the championship tee, bridging the fairway and first cut of rough. The second bunker is on the left but not directly across from the other bunker. It’s 20 paces further on and measures 290 yards from the tee.
If a player chooses less than driver, they will favour the left-hand side of the hole and stare down this bunker, while also being aware of the out-of-bounds line McIlroy crossed in 2019.
If instead they opt for driver, they will then look to skirt the right-hand side of the hole and have to avoid the right bunker and out-of-bounds line.
While 421 yards may not seem like a lengthy two-shot hole by modern standards, the hole does play uphill. In the final round in 2019, Lowry hit an iron off the first tee, missed the fairway and had 216 yards left. He made bogey, but luckily started the day with a four-shot lead, ultimately winning by six.
Photo: David Cannon
That year, it wasn’t just he and McIlroy who struggled on the first hole. There were 21 scores of double-bogey or worse, with only the 475-yard 11th seeing more high numbers.
Pick up a course guide from the Royal Portush pro shop this week and you’ll note the tip written in italics above the opening hole. It reads: “Unless against the wind, take a 3-wood or long iron for your opening tee shot.”
It seems most of the field this week will follow that advice.
No doubt, all would happily take a 4.
Rory would.
