Ryder Cup: What players are saying about the course set-up

“I don’t think you’ll go anywhere else where you’ll see as many fist-pump pars”: Players from both teams give their verdict on Le Golf National 

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Justin Rose: “This week, you’re going to see a lot of holes won with par”

It’s a very fair setup and it’s a very challenging setup. Especially with the wind direction that we played yesterday, there’s a lot of tee shots with the wind blowing left-to-right, which is hard to fit into the fairways. The fairways are fairly narrow, which is in stark contrast to how Hazeltine is set up.

Typically, Medinah and Hazeltine have been very little rough, very fast greens, and obviously here, we have quite narrow fairways, quite substantial rough off the fairway where you’re struggling to get to the green and greens that are rolling fairly fast but not quick.

We all know this golf course is a great golf course, lots of water. I think it’s going to create very interesting matches. I think Hazeltine was a putting competition for the most part. The greens were perfect. You’re winning holes with birdies; very few times you would make bogey and not many holes were won with par, basically.

This week, you’re going to see a lot of holes won with par, and it’s going to create a very different mentality and some exciting matches. I think some guys are going to hit into the rough, and doesn’t necessarily mean you’re out of the hole. You have to work very hard for par on quite a few occasions around here. A very different type of golf course, and it will be fun for both teams. It doesn’t suit any team more than any other. You could argue quite U.S. Open-esque. Traditionally, quite narrow fairways and a lot of rough. So no one is going to be unfamiliar with this type of golf.

Webb Simpson: “it is one of the hardest Ryder Cup course that I’ve seen”

I think my two Ryder Cups, Medinah and Gleneagles, were similar in the sense there was plenty of birdies to be made. This week, not so much. And if you miss the fairways here, it’s super penal. I’m sure guys have talked about it, but the rough is mowed back into us, so if a ball is in the rough, you’re probably not getting it to the green, which might not change strategy per se off the tee, but it does change your mental approach thinking, I’m going to win.

There’s going to be plenty of holes won in alternate-shot with pars and I even venture to say, I think there’s going to be holes won in fourballs with pars, I really do. I mean, 18, there’s a bunch of holes out there where you have to hit not only a great tee ball but you have to hit a great second shot.

So it is one of the hardest Ryder Cup course that I’ve seen in a while. It’s just massive premium on fairway.

Rory McIlroy: “you get punished if you hit it off-line”

I think it plays, you know — you get punished if you hit it off-line. I feel like at Hazeltine, the punishment wasn’t high enough if you hit it off-line, and I guess that sometimes plays into some of the American’s hands, because they have guys that just hit it so long, you can stand up and — and that’s not — like I’m probably one of those guys, so it doesn’t quite play into my hands.

I think for the bulk of The European Team, they would welcome a setup more of this style. Not saying the American guys can’t hit it in the fairways, they are all some of the best players in the world, but I think just looking at it, it would seem the style of golf course is more familiar to us than something like we saw at Hazeltine last time

Jon Rahm: “every single shot you have out here at Le Golf National is tense”

A lot of times the game of golf on the PGA TOUR is somewhat repetitive, where it’s see who can hit the longest drive, see who can hit it the highest on the green, you know, to stop it on a very small shelf and very firm, fast greens, and if you miss the green, just give me the lob-wedge, and the lob-wedge again…

You come here, and you start on the first few holes, you see No. 1, it’s a short hole. It’s just a lay-up off the tee. It’s arguably the widest fairway off the tee. And still as tense as can be. Still tenser than most of the tee shots we play on The European — on the PGA TOUR. A very narrow second shot, even if you have just a wedge. Then you go to the second hole. I mean, every single shot you have out here at Le Golf National is tense. There’s not one relaxed moment. It doesn’t give you much room for error. You need to think about it. You need to think about what you’re doing, the type of shot, the consequences.

In my mind, it’s what the game of golf should be like. It’s a lot more enjoyable. It’s a lot of fun if you play good. It’s a fight. Without being links golf, is the closest you could get to links golf… Magnificent golf course. Great design. It’s in as good of shape as a golf course can be. 

Phil Mickelson: “it’s a wonderful test of golf”

I think it’s an incredible golf course. I think the consensus amongst all the players is that it’s a wonderful test of golf. The setup is as good as it could possibly be. It’s just in pristine, immaculate shape, and yet provides a very good challenge that’s a fair challenge. I think it’s a wonderful test.

At Hazeltine, you saw a lot of birdies. You saw a lot of aggressive play and I think you’ll see less aggressiveness, more conservative tee-to-green, but once you get on the greens, they are a little bit flatter and you can really make putts here. You can be aggressive from 20 to 40 feet. I think you’re going to see a lot of putts made, and that will be most likely the difference.

Tommy Fleetwood: “You have to hit a good shot or you’re in trouble”

In general, when it is — when the pressure is at its most, you can bail-out one side. You can stand up on these holes and there’s nowhere to go. You have to hit a good shot or you’re in trouble. I’ve always thought that closing stretch, that’s the one good thing about it is that you have no other option than to try and hit a good shot.

Bubba Watson: “it won’t be driver”

It’s one of those golf courses where you’re going to have a lot of ball placement, so whatever that club is, it won’t be driver. It will be a lot of irons, a lot of woods off the tees.

We are all going to place it in pretty much the same area and try to attack from there. It’s the second shot is where you would try to attack and you would have a birdie opportunity. It’s not going to be — the way this rough is kind of mown toward you or cut toward you, you have to hit the fairways. So even if you’re a long way away, but in the fairway, it’s better off than being in the rough and way down there.

Both teams have a lot of irons and woods off the tee, hybrids, whatever you want to call it, off the tees, trying to get in position.

Francesco Molinari: “It’s a strong, tough course”

It’s a course I like a lot. I enjoy playing here. It’s one of my favourite venues on The European Tour.

I’ve had some pretty good results in the past. I think it’s a course that it’s in front of you. There’s no secrets. There’s no tricks. It’s a strong, tough course. You need to hit good golf shots off the tee and into the greens.  I think it’s a great course because in the end, whoever hits the biggest number of good golf shots is going to probably win the match. So that’s the kind of course that you want.

I’m not sure how much of an advantage it will be for us knowing it well. I think the only advantage we can have is maybe if the conditions change between the practise rounds and the tournament days, like different wind directions and things like that, because we’ve seen the course with any conditions, and they are going to have only three days to kind of see the course and learn how to play.

Jordan Spieth: “I don’t think you’ll go anywhere else where you’ll see as many fist-pump pars“

 It’s one of the more difficult golf courses that we’ll play all year. So it will play very different from Hazeltine, and a bit different from Gleneagles, but nothing that is totally unusual for us to see, and the crowds — you know, they are going to be very European, and anything that gets to you, you’re in control of, anyways. 

If you miss the fairway, you’re likely not going to be able to hold the green, and with a lot of greens surrounded by water, you’re actually having to really kind of almost lay up out of the rough.

And this tee shot’s as difficult a first tee shot as we’ve probably played the entire season. That adds to it. But it won’t be till kind of that morning that you’ll be thinking of the first tee ball, and you’ve got a partner with you this time. It’s not foursomes. And it will be really cold, so I’ll probably hit driver, which is a good thing — bigger head, better.

I don’t think you’ll go anywhere else where you’ll see as many fist-pump pars as you’ll see this week, especially in the afternoon foursomes when the wind picks up. It was windy yesterday and we were playing best-ball and there weren’t that many birdies outside the par 5s.

But this is a unique and exciting test for us players. It may not be as exciting for the fans that are there watching. Obviously if their side is winning, they are going to be as excited, but you know what I mean, like the loud roars off of made putts, you just won’t see that many birdie opportunities as we saw at Hazeltine just because if you miss the fairway, you’re fighting for par.