Twin cities hoping to weather golfing storm

Charlie Mulqueen

Their preparation has been meticulous but there are two factors still beyond their control. The first and least important is the appalling traffic jams. Even though it's dual carriageway for the full 30 miles from hotel to the course, the journey is taking an hour, and sometimes, more to complete.

Of far greater concern is the threat of thunderstorms on both Saturday and Sunday. It was here in 1991 that, during the US Open, lightning killed one spectator and injured five others. Two months later, another was killed by a strike during the US PGA in Indianapolis.

Those tragedies caused Mike McClellan to start a company that provides the weather service for the US Tour events as well as the four majors.

Incidents of golfers being struck by lightning are rare. Retief Goosen was struck as an amateur player in South African and was lucky there was a doctor nearby. It's a much dangerous situation, however, for spectators, especially when 40,000 or so are around a relatively small area as will be the case here over the weekend.

"All we can hope to do is warn people as quickly as possible," he says. "We're different from a meteorologist or a TV station because they're giving weather information over a wide area. We track storms right into the golf course. There are hundreds of people each year who are struck by lightning and they don't die. They think there's no danger if it isn't raining but a storm can throw out lightning for 40 or 50 miles ahead of it.

"Golf courses are one of the most dangerous places to be. They always have a lot of water and they're in open areas. Lightning loves water because it takes the path of least resistance and water has little resistance."

The trouble, of course, is that following McLlellan's advice and seeking shelter is not very easy because there is very little suitable shelter available.

"Shelter very certainly is not a tree," he stressed. "Don't stand under a tree, that's what six people did here 11 years ago with tragic circumstances."