Five Questions With
The NCGA spoke with the Olympic Club’s Director of Golf Maintenance Operations Pat Finlen on Thursday, to talk about the 100th California State Amateur, the recent Olympic Club renovation and the hosting of the 2012 U.S. Open at the Olympic Club.
Pat Finlen
What are your thoughts on The Olympic Club hosting the 100th California State Amateur?
The Olympic Club is an amateur athletic club, so we are very excited to host amateur athletic events. Being able to host the 100th anniversary of the California State Amateur is especially important for us due to tenure of the event and the quality of competitors. The format is much like the U.S. Amateur which we hosted in 2007, so our staff is very well accustomed to this format.
What type of player is best suited to win at The Olympic Club?
Adaptable is probably the best word I could use to describe the winning player. With uneven lies, narrow fairways, small greens and unpredictable weather, your game has to be able to adapt to many different conditions.
The Olympic Club recently renovated, what was the main objective in renovating the course?
The renovation of our greens was done to replace the poa annua putting surfaces with bentgrass due to the nematode issue many coastal courses are facing. The NCGA has played a very instrumental role in on-going research with the nematode issue and in looking at various bentgrasses suitable for this climate. This helped us to make our decision to go to bentgrass back in 2008. In our case, we replaced fourteen greens with the exact same contours as the old greens and then rebuilt four greens with different contours that are characteristic of the fourteen greens.
How will the course setup compare from this week to next year’s U.S. Open at the Olympic Club? Will the rough be longer?
There will be a number of differences for next year’s Open. Green speeds will be faster and the rough will be much longer. Other than that, this week’s State Amateur competitors are playing many of the same tees that will be used next year during the U.S. Open. The firmness of the greens and moisture content today is very close to what we will experience next year.
What will you do differently than Congressional? The winning score here won’t be 268, will it?
The setup for the U.S. Open is dictated by the USGA. We are around 400 yards shorter than Congressional. Our rough will most likely be longer, as we will not have the hot weather to deal with as Congressional had prior to this year’s championship. As for scoring, I don’t think we will see 268. My guess is we will be closer to 278-282, unless we have a week of sunny clear weather with no wind, which usually does not happen in June in San Francisco.
George Gandranata
What does the title of State Amateur Champion mean to you?
Oh, it’s big. It means a lot because obviously this is our state championship. I think our state compared to other states has the best players. I mean you can look at the [PGA] Tour players and there are a lot of the players from California; and you look at the history too, the winner of this event, a lot of those players that have been [PGA] Tour players. It would be an honor to win this event with such a rich history.
What are your thoughts on this year’s host venue, The Olympic Club?
One thing that came to my mind right away when people say ‘Olympic Club’ is the U.S. Open, because this course is definitely a U.S. Open course; it’s tight, it’s narrow, it’s challenging and the greens are hard. I mean it’s in San Francisco it’s a beautiful area and with the weather the past two days it was awesome playing here, you can’t get much better than that. It’s definitely the best venue as far as a challenge, the best test [compared to other California courses].
PGA Tour golfer your game most resembles?
Tim Clark
Favorite golf tip?
I always do the 3-footer drill. I like to make 20 out of 20 [from 3-feet] around the world or around the clock [before a round].
Dream Foursome?
Jack Nicklaus, Tom Watson, me and my dad.
Scott Travers
What does the title of State Amateur champion mean to you?
It’s tough to say how much the title means to me a year later. It still hasn’t really hit me yet. Past champions have said, “You may not realize it now, but no matter what happens no one can take this title away from you.”
In terms of my golf career it certainly opened up opportunities to take my game to the next level.
What are your thoughts on this year’s host venue, The Olympic Club?
The Olympic Club is a great host for the 100th Championship. There is a lot of history at the club, and it’s both an honor and privilege to play an event here. Both the Lake and Ocean courses are great tests of golf because they require you’re best effort on every shot.
PGA Tour golfer your game most resembles?
Steve Stricker.
Favorite golf tip?
Don’t hit a shot in competition that you haven’t practiced before.
Dream foursome?
Tom Watson, Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus and myself.
Steve Woods
What does the title of State Amateur champion mean to you?
The State Am is a grueling championship where your physical and mental ability is tested over eight rounds of intense competition against the best amateurs in the country playing on the best courses in the world; winning it is one of the biggest accomplishments in my golf career.
What are your thoughts on this year’s host venue, The Olympic Club?
The Olympic Club and its members have been a part of amateur athletics for over 150 years and is home to one of the most prestigious golf courses in the world, I can’t think of a better venue to host the 100th California Amateur.
PGA Tour golfer your game most resembles?
Paul Azinger
Favorite golf tip?
Whether you are trying to win a tournament or going for your lowest score, don’t fear the moment, create it!
Dream foursome?
I play in it all the time with my three buddies, John, Jerod and Tony.