U.S. Senior Open preview

I had the chance in May to visit the Warren Course at ND and join the U.S. Senior Open preview. Weather was (wait for it…) - Rainy. But it held off long enough for us to get a look at the course, and happy to report it drains very well; the staff described how through the years, many feet of sand have been added to the property and it seemed to work. If you’re attending, you will see that they re-routed the course for the championship (and by the way, you SHOULD play there sometime if not, we only have one Coore and Crenshaw design in IN). What was normally the sixteenth, near the clubhouse is now number one; they’ve converted the par 5 tenth to a par 4 and it’s now number four, etc. The greens were immaculate and the rough was dense, if not quite long enough yet (they’re targeting 3 inches or more in the wayward areas). There’s plenty of heather in play, and with almost 2 months between my visit and the tournament, I expect it to be pretty penal. At the press conference, USGA pledged to get the course “firm and fast” and unless we continue with this year’s monsoon season, they should get their wish. The field looks great with some big-time names like Davis Love, Bernhard Langer, Scott McCarron and some local flavor like Chris Smith from Peru, IN; Indiana University Alumnus Shaun Micheel; and UK player Steve Flesch. The drive is very manageable from Indy, and it’s not often our state hosts a USGA event. The course is very walkeable and they’re putting up a lot of infrastructure. Your faithful GolfIndy.info staff will be on-site, posting some updates on social, and getting some copy from a few players. And if you’re of a certain age, you might be surprised to see a ton of names you know from the PGA Tour. Make a plan and come on out.

The trophy is ready!

A glance over to the first fairway

Really solid turf everywhere

Greens are perfect