When asked what was his favorite part of the newly renovated TPC Potomac at Avenel Farm, Fred Funk was stumped.
“The 19th hole,” the PGA Tour veteran said. “It’s gonna be a couple beers every night just to get over the golf course. It’s gonna beat a lot of people up.”
With the Senior Players Championship making a one-year pit stop in Potomac, this is an opportunity for Avenel to forge a new identity. The PGA Tour poured $25 million into the face-lift to create a course capable of hosting major competitive golf.
On the links at AvenelAfter serving as an assistant captain at the Ryder Cup, which ended Monday, Tom Lehman withdrew from the Senior Players Championship. But captain Corey Pavin and assistant captain Jeff Sluman have stuck by their commitments. Both were in the pro-am Wednesday with afternoon tee times. Pavin begged off a scheduled news conference Wednesday morning.Other interesting tidbits from Avenel:Long distance runaround » With TPC Potomac saturated, the course played difficult and long Tuesday, so officials moved tees up for Wednesday’s pro-am. The course still was tough. Of the first 24 players to tee off, only four were under par. Jay Don Blake, Peter Senior and David Frost were 2-under par. Olin Browne was at 1 under. Tom Kite (9 over) and Chien Soon Lu (14 over) shot the worst scores.Couples has the drive » Fred Couples was a pitchman for Cadillac for 18 years, but he announced Wednesday that he has signed a three-year deal with Jaguar. “It’s a rocket ship,” Couples said.First-timer Watson » Don’t ask 61-year-old Tom Watson about the renovations at Avenel. Until Wednesday’s pro-am, he never had played the course. Hallberg’s rare triple » With his win at last week’s Champions Tour event, the Ensure Classic, Gary Hallberg became one of four players to capture victories on the PGA, Nationwide and Champions tours. The others are Keith Fergus, Lehman and Ron Streck.Langer’s diet » No player has changed as little physically during his career as German Bernhard Langer. The 53-year-old is 5-foot-9, 160 pounds. He admitted to “good genes” and staying active. “I have to work at it a little bit more,” Langer said. “And I am not a couch potato.”Weather report good » Sunny and warm is the prediction for the weekend, which will bring out the teeth in Avenel, according to Langer. “Greens are very difficult and fast,” Langer said. “If the greens dry out, it going to be even tougher.”Hole to watch » No. 9, Par 3The most infamous hole on the original version of Avenel was No. 9, a severe downhill par 3 that played over and alongside Rock Run. It has been lengthened, and the green sits on a hillside. Instead of a 60-foot drop, it is now a gentle 20-foot difference between the tee and green. “When the wind was blowing it was no fun playing that hole,” said Fred Couples, who likes the changes. The hole was formerly the focal point for spectators, who sat in shade on the wooded hillsides that surrounded the green. It will no longer serve that function.
The new Avenel, according to Funk and others, is a beast.
“I’m real curious what we’re gonna shoot out here,” Funk said. “It’s a tough par 70. I’ll take even par right now. If we played the tips, the way it’s playing right now, I would have taken 12 over as a winning score. … It’s only [7,136] yards, but it’s playing like 8,000.”
Pitches & Putts blogFollow the action from the Senior Players Championship on Examiner golf writer Kevin Dunleavy’s blog.Senior Players ChampionshipWhen » Thursday-SundayWhere » TPC Potomac at Avenel FarmWhat » The Senior Players is the final of five majors on the Champions Tour. It was played the last three years at Baltimore Country Club.Defending champion » Jay Haas Admission » Free
Others were effusive in their praise of Avenel on Wednesday, declaring the course tough but fair and much improved.
“Very impressive,” Mark O’Meara said. “I think they’ve done a super job. There’s no reason why a regular tour event like Tiger’s [AT&T National] or a big major tournament couldn’t come and play here.”
For years, Avenel suffered in comparison to nearby Congressional. When the PGA Tour shifted the Kemper Open from Congressional to Avenel in 1987, the move was premature as there were outright bare spots on the course.
After making double bogey on the infamous ninth hole in the final two rounds in 1987, Greg Norman had a solution to improve the downhill par 3.
“Blow it up,” he said.
A few years later, Nick Price declared the meandering 13th hole at Avenel “the worst par 5 on the planet.”
Few pros were complaining after playing Wednesday’s pro-am.
“I always thought this was a beautiful piece of ground with a few holes that gave it a bad reputation. I think that’s been resolved,” said D.C. native Olin Browne, who is in his second year on the Champions Tour. “The quality of the golf course now matches the quality of the property.”
Fred Couples said Wednesday he was not a fan of Avenel I but proclaimed the sequel a success, especially the “incredible” back nine.
“There’s a lot of pretty, pretty holes,” Couples said. “I can’t imagine anyone saying this isn’t a good course now.”
[email protected]
