Farmingdale, NY (WGR 550) -- It’s always been a topic of discussion. Are professional golfers athletes? Well, if they aren’t athletes, then they are in a lot better shape then we give them credit for. While walking the entire Bethpage Black course Saturday I realized one thing, these golfers don’t get enough credit for how athletic they are.
Athlete ~ noun
A person trained or gifted in exercises or contests involving physical agility, stamina, or strength; a participant in a sport, exercise, or game requiring physical skill.
If that’s not the definition of a professional golfer, I don’t know what is.
The Black course at Bethpage is an incredibly physically demanding course. The hills are something you can’t realize the greatness of, until you experience them in person. The elevation changes certainly can’t be portrayed to their full scale on television. The pros have to walk these “mountains” everyday (sometimes twice a day) for almost a week straight. I’d say that it’s quite an accomplishment considering the equally exhausting mental toughness they go through just competing in the golf aspect of the U.S. Open. Granted I am admittedly an out of shape person, with a bad left knee (two ACL surgeries), but just walking this course is more than a work out.
For the patrons of the Open, the trek around Black was nearly impossible under the rainy and muddy conditions this weekend. The scene behind the ropes could have been mistaken for Woodstock, not a golf course hosting a major. Some spots had mud so thick and deep that shoes were lost. Many areas were closed off to the public after Thursday due to unsafe walking conditions. I felt bad for the people who took care of this course getting it ready for the Open, making it look just perfect, only to have it turn into a disgusting mud pit three hours into play on day one. Even though Friday was beautiful with no rain, the course took more punishment. With the crowds increasing, the bad spots got even worse as thousands of people traipsed through the bogs that were outside the ropes. I can’t even fathom how long it might take for the grass to return to its normal self after this weekend.
Besides the terrain and horrible walking conditions, the Black course is unlike a lot of courses in that the front and back nines don’t both finish at the clubhouse. With 5 courses on the Bethpage Park grounds, Black is set up in more of an out-and-back style with the 8th green and 9th tee box being the farthest part of the course away from the clubhouse. So for the fans wanting to see the entire course, it was quite a treacherous journey.
Though getting around Black was sometimes tough, there were some truly awesome spots around the grounds to watch the world’s best. The hill going up to the clubhouse creates some great views as the raised tee box of the 1st made it seem like the balls hung in the air forever heading down to the fairway. While watching players hit their approaches into 18 green, the hill gave a very cool prospective of ball flight as you could see them attack the pin from above. Standing in the fairway of the 15th hole was daunting, as the ridiculously high raised green surrounded by bunkers, made it seem like the players had to stop their ball on top of a skyscraper. At the farthest point on the course, the par 3, eighth hole is like a hidden gem tucked away. From the tee box, you look down on a steep drop that is home to the only water on the Black course and a lone oak tree just off the right of the green, making this par 3 very difficult and picturesque. Though those spots were just a few of my favorites, each hole had its own unique blend of challenging play and amazing beauty.
So after all that, walking the Black wasn’t too bad. For this golf enthusiast it was certainly worth the sweat, back aches, tired feet, muddy and wet clothes to see everything this great course had to offer. Hopefully everyone who attended the U.S. Open at Bethpage Black experienced the same.
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