The tournament course, itself, has been renamed TPC Blue Monster at Doral. Whether or not the name change effectively means anything at all isn't important. The fact new life has been breathed into to the Blue Course and the resort does mean something.
WGC's CA Championship
The World Golf Championships CA Championship now being played over the layout is the provider of that new breath of life.
The top-50 players (and ties) in the world converge on TPC Blue Monster for four days of medal play, which differs from the WGC Accenture World Match Play that garners a great deal of early-season attention. The last of the three WGC events, all of which are sanctioned by the International Federation of PGA Tours, is the Bridgestone Invitational.
The CA Championship has been played since 1999, when it was contested at the Valderrama Golf Club in Valderama, Spain. The event was cancelled in 2001. To date, Tiger Woods has one the championship five times, including the innaugural 1999 event. Other champions include Phil Mickelson (2009), Mike Weir (2000), Ernie Els (2004), and Geoff Ogilvy (2008).
TPC Blue Monster
After being introduced to the course by two opening "birdie holes", the reachable par-5 first hole and the short par-4 second, the par-4 third is an introduction into what's to come. A precision drive is required off the third tee, otherwise a lake awaits on the left and deep rough on the right, and an approach to a sharply-sloped green. Though the 18th is the signature hole, the 3rd has had its say in the outcome of many tournaments.
The TPC Blue Monster's signature hole is the 18th, the "real" blue monster. It may be a beautiful thing to see for the spectator, but the player sees something much different.
The tee shot on the long par-four is almost perpetually into the wind or into a left-to-right head wind. That head wind can push a slightly errant shot toward or into the right rough, which leads to a long approach into a green well-protected by the "blue" of the monster, a lake that runs almost the entire length of the hole. The 18th has consistently ranked as one of the toughest finishing holes on tour.
For the 2010 event, the greens have been resurfaced, which provides a truer test for the best players in the world coming to the event.
Throughout the entire layout, undulating greens, deep bermuda rough and water hazards await their victims. Champions are those who can place approaches in the right spots on the greens and avoid the unforgiving bermuda. Certainly, the water is a danger, and what has given the course much of its fame, but it is the least of the three evils.
A great championship awaits the greatest players. TPC Blue Monster will ensure that the last person standing is the week's best champion.
Source: PGATOUR.com.
Alan L. Hammond - In addition to his Suite 101 Golf coverage, Alan is an editor and writer for SportsMD Media LLC, which publishes GolfersMD.com and ...
Join the Conversation