Course to play tough out of the rough

Hard, fast greens of Pine Needles also will challenge LPGA players at Open

SOUTHERN PINES -- Lorena Ochoa, the No. 1 women's golfer in the world, was less than 24 hours removed from a playoff victory when she stepped onto the first tee at Pine Needles Lodge and Golf Club on Monday.

The gap between the Wegmans LPGA and the U.S. Women's Open is a little more difficult to cross.

With its raised greens playing hard and fast and its rough still growing, Pine Needles' quills are just as sharp as the U.S. Golf Association likes them to be, even with a few days still to go before Thursday's first round.

"It's a beautiful course, just like a major, you know?" Ochoa said. "You have something in mind, and it's just exactly like that. The conditions around the green, the rough -- it's tough.

"I can't imagine what it's going to be like on the weekend. You just have to stay patient and play smart golf."

Playing either 6,644 or 6,664 yards this week after a 2004 redesign by architect John Fought, the Donald Ross-designed course isn't too far short of the Women's Open record of 6,749.

As part of that renovation, Pine Needles' mix of rye and bermuda grass was replaced by solid bermuda, which makes the rough stickier and more difficult but needs lots of heat to grow.

That was almost a problem when the U.S. Open visited Pinehurst No. 2 in 2005: It was touch-and-go whether the rough would be ready after a cold, wet spring.

That wasn't a problem for Pine Needles, which benefited from unusually hot weather and two extra weeks of growing time.

"My one concern was that it would not be tough enough for them," Pine Needles owner Peggy Kirk Bell said. "But in 1996 and '01, we had the rye grass. It was not as thick or long as the bermuda. Some of the players have said it's different [from 2001]. I said it's a different time of year, and we can get the bermuda to grow in."

David Fruchte, the director of grounds and golf maintenance, said the USGA even asked him to thin the rough a little bit.

"It was a little too severe for play," Fruchte said. "They had us mow it down a little bit to try and get them to advance the ball a little bit further."

The idea is to encourage players to attempt shots to the green out of the rough, rather than chipping out in defeat.

Even so, players were wondering how tough it would get with an additional few days of growing time.

"It's playing pretty long," former Duke golfer Brittany Lang said. "It should be a good test. The rough isn't as thick as it will be Thursday. It's not incredibly tough, not like Oakmont rough. I'm sure that was a lot longer and tougher."

The greens, meanwhile, are rolling at about a 12 1/2 on the Stimpmeter, perhaps not quite as slick as they were at the U.S. Open at Oakmont two weeks ago, which were 13 1/2 to 14 1/2, but still somewhere between concrete and ceramic tile. That presents a particular challenge on a Ross course, where greens often sit elevated on humps surrounded by steep slopes.

During a practice round Monday, Pat Hurst putted from the front of the 18th green all the way off the back, and Juli Inkster thrilled the crowd by running along with the ball, clearing the way with her putter.

"They're a little quick, a little speedy," Morgan Pressel said. "You just have to be careful and know where to miss it. ...

"You have to be pretty creative with shots around the green and hitting shots that you might not hit on a daily basis. You just have to be patient, because it's an Open and pars are usually pretty good scores."

(Staff writer Chip Alexander contributed to this report.)