Crenshaw’s final comments on Whistling Straits
Ben Crenshaw got a second place finish at the US Senior Open at Whistling Straits golf course. He was asked one final question on his thoughts on the golf course.
Q. Where do you think this course ranks? You played them, just about played them all.
BEN CRENSHAW: This is an incredible creation. I knew what happened here and what was put together and how it was done is astounding. I mean, it just doesn’t, you cannot, there’s not too many people in the world who have an eye and a will to work and to do things in a bold fashion as Pete Dye does.
As I said earlier in the week, he’s probably the best at working with a certain material. And just, he just goes at it like a badger. But he’s remarkable. I mean, if you go out here, if you looked out there, you, and if you knew something about what the property was and what it looks like now, you, what a creation. It is a heck of a creation.
One major criticism of Whistling Straits is that the approaches are bent grass, which doesn’t allow for shots to land short of the green and bounce/roll forward. That’s a major departure in many ways from a links golf course, which the Straits is supposed to emulate. It’s interesting that nobody has ever asked Pete Dye about this very important aspect of the golf course. I also think it’s why Crenshaw, who has praised Pete Dye this week, doesn’t really talk about the virtues of the golf course itself – simply what the property was prior to construction compared to what it is now.
