Mount Juliet a world-class challenge

The Amex course is a showcase venue for first-rate golf, Charlie Mulqueen reports.

WHILE the eyes of the golfing world are on the US PGA Championship in Minnesota, the work is going on quietly and methodically to ensure the success of the $5.5million American Express World Championship at Mount Juliet from September 19 to 22.

In the weeks before the Ryder Cup at The Belfry, it promises top-class golf and Mount Juliet can show off the outstanding quality of our facilities to a worldwide audience.

And with Tiger Woods to officially announce in the next couple of weeks his participation, the buzz surrounding the Amex is already apparent.

Championship director Peter Adams was ensconced at the delightful Co Kilkenny complex and was confident that the runaway world number one would make his first competitive appearance in Ireland.

“Woods doesn’t confirm his intention to play in any event until very close to the time,” Adams said.

“However, every indication is that he will be at Mount Juliet,” he said.

“He has always played in the world championships and indeed has won four, including the Amex in 1999,” he said.

“He is sponsored by American Express, and with the Ryder Cup the following week, he has the ideal opportunity to shake off jet lag and get fully ready for The Belfry.

“On top of all that, he played a practice round here when he was in Ireland on the week before the Open and that’s another clear indication.”

Our own seventh in the world, Padraig Harrington, will play over his “home” course, and the expectation is also for great things from the Irish.

With a cool million dollars for the winner and $4.5million to be played for by the remainder, not to mention priceless world ranking points, the incentives are enormous.

Those entitled to play are the top 50 in the world rankings on September 9 with, if they haven’t already qualified, the top 30 on the US Tour; the top 20 on the European Tour; the top three on the South African, Australasian and Japanese Tours, and the winner of the 2001 Asian Tour.

At time of writing, that would make for a field of 71 players.

Aidan O’Hara has a reputation as one of the world’s outstanding golf course superintendents.

He relishes the challenge of having the world’s best tackle the course on which he and his staff lavish limitless loving care.

He was satisfied that recent rain combined with intense heat would further benefit a layout in superb condition.

What was good enough for the professionals at the Irish Open at Mount Juliet from 1993 to 1995 may not be sufficient to cope with the amazing advances made in the few intervening years in the area of modern technology and the golf ball.

The winning totals back then were 276 by Nick Faldo in ’93; 275 by Bernhard Langer in ’94 and 277 in ’95 by Sam Torrance.

Steps have been taken to ensure that the high-class field will again be confronted by a course equipped to defend itself against their genius.

The second, fifth, eighth, 10th, 12th, 16th, 17th and the 18th holes have been lengthened so that the yardage will be about 7,246 up from 7,143.

The second cut of rough is being grown to about five inches deep.

“Our key function, in what is an enormously complex logistical exercise, is to ensure our course is presented in pristine condition and as a true world-class challenge,” Mount Juliet chairman Tim Mahony said.

“In that regard, once the event was announced, we spoke with our great friend and course designer, Jack Nicklaus, to seek his views on possible alterations,” Mahony said.

“Jack and his team, together with Mount Juliet’s Jeff Howes and Aidan O’Hara, came up with a programme which has seen us build some new championship tees as well as tightening up some of the fairways to standards associated with major tournaments.

“Last year, we refurbished all 18 greens and approaches to ensure that the putting surfaces could be made as true and as fast any in the world.”

As well as Woods, the likes of Phil Mickelson, Ernie Els, Retief Goosen, Sergio Garcia, Davis Love, David Duval, Vijay Singh and Nick Price as well as Europe’s best, are on their way.

“We set ourselves a target of 25,000 spectators each day and ticket sales would indicate that we are well on course to meeting it,” Adams said.

“We are delighted with the way they have gone. We have been selling from almost a year before the tournament was due to be played, that is unprecedented, but the public reaction has been outstanding,” he said.

Meanwhile, Canadian Mike Weir, winner at Valderrama in 2000, was intent on retaining the title he was unable to defend twelve months ago because of the tragic events of September 11.

“I am sure there is great excitement about the Ryder Cup, but fans should remember that there are many top players from outside Europe and the US for whom the Ryder Cup can be no more than a spectacle to be watched on television,” reasoned the left hander from Ontario.

“The World Championships attract the world’s best players and obviously I am looking forward to defending my title and also to playing competitive golf in Ireland for the first time.”

Those who feared the European Ryder Cup players might burn themselves out before Mount Juliet had nothing to worry about, according to skipper Sam Torrance.

“People who question the wisdom of this fail to realise that professional golfers operate best at high octane levels and the better the competition, the sharper their game tends to be,” he said.