The beauty of Royal County Down is overwhelming. Its conditions are daunting. It’s both beauty and the beast. We are in sacred territory, the experts assure. Others claim they have never seen a links course in better condition. Royal County Down is the stage this week for the Amgen Irish Open. The tournament kicks off this Thursday. The players are cautious and cross themselves, while the spectators rub their hands. A spectacle to watch from the first to the last minute.
In the backstage of the Irish Open, among players and caddies, nothing else has been talked about in the last few hours. It’s the hot topic.
– Do you really see someone winning under par on Sunday? It seems impossible to me…
– And the cut? Wait and see if it doesn’t go to eight or seven over par.
There are many golfers who assure that they have never played a golf tournament under more demanding conditions, and that’s even though some of them have already tasted the thorns of the Majors. The course is very firm, the greens are hard, the wind is blowing beautifully, with gusts that can reach 50 kilometres per hour, always crosswind, tricky, there is quite a bit of blind shot from the tee, the fairways are well protected by those cat’s claws that can turn your next shot into a nightmare… It’s going to be a real challenge. A very fun week.
In reality, it’s not something that should surprise anyone. Royal County Down already hosted the Irish Open in 2015 and the carnage was brutal. Soren Kjeldsen won with two under par and only five players finished under par, including the Canarian Rafa Cabrera Bello. The cut went to +5. In fact, in the last 25 years only the 2007 edition at Adare Manor, with Padraig Harrington as champion, was more complicated. More than four bogeys were made per round, almost double the birdies. However, as the exception that proves the rule, Andy Sullivan achieved an albatross.
It’s futile to try to guess what the winning score will be. It’s going to be a tough week, difficult, with few golfers under par, but whether it will be won at +2, PAR, -2 or -6 will be seen, it will also depend, as always, on the inspiration of three or four players. At first glance, it seems that it will be more difficult than in 2015, but we’ll see. For what it’s worth, Kjeldsen’s caddie, who already won here in 2015, assures that the course is more complicated than in that edition. It could be a good clue.
In any case, we’ll see what happens. The course is tough, but the DP World Tour doesn’t intend to make life impossible for the players. It will be a tough test, but fair. The great ally that Royal County Down has found to show itself so fierce, even more so than nine years ago, is the wind and, more specifically, its direction. On practice days and this Thursday, in the first round, it will blow from the northwest, the most difficult, as it catches crosswind on all holes. The prevailing wind is the southwest, which catches tailwind or headwind on most of the holes and, therefore, is more manageable. Yesterday there were players who aimed 15 metres to the right of the green, with wind from the right, and ended up bouncing off the green on the left.
Similarly, some tees will be moved forward, such as the 9th, about 50 yards, or the 2nd, about 20. In both cases the explanation is simple: if a significant gust of wind rises, there are players who might not reach the fairway. The 9th will be moved forward all week, while the 2nd or the 4th, a beautiful par 3, with the elevated tee, of 211 metres, will be moved forward on Thursday and Friday and we’ll see what is done on the weekend depending on the weather.
The forecast says that it will blow on Thursday and in the most difficult direction. Also, it’s cold. The thermal sensation early in the morning can be about two degrees. However, it will improve. The wind blows less on Friday and the direction changes. The weekend will be southwest and west wind and the temperatures will rise.
The course is tough. Here’s a fact. With the TrueFirm, a device that measures the hardness on the greens, yesterday Tuesday they were at 120, which is quite hard (it is said that from 130 it is a stone), but today, with the showers that fell yesterday, it is at 114. The ball, from the fairway, takes a hard first bounce, but it can be stopped. However, speaking of the greens, many say they are the best they have played on a links. They will be at 10.5 speed all week, it can’t be raised more, but they roll wonderfully, with an immaculate nobility.
Another difficulty is around the green, almost all built in flan shape, so they are surrounded by escape areas. The grass grows with the hair towards the outside of the green, so the approaches are quite complicated. If you bounce short, with the hair against, you may not reach and the ball returns to your feet, and if you bounce already on the green it won’t be easy to stop it.
In short, sacred ground. One of the best links on the planet. Grab your popcorn and enjoy.
