PGA Tour Arnold Palmer Invitational – Vorbericht

Am Donnerstag geht es wieder los in Sachen Golf. In Orlando Florida werden die Arnold Palmer Invitational  gespielt und im Kuala Lumpur Golf & Country Club die Maybank Malaysian Open. Aber bleiben wir doch erst mal auf der PGA Tour und schauen uns das bevorstehende Turnier in Florida etwas genauer an.

Arnold Palmer Invitational

Quelle:Golfweek.com

Titelverteidiger ist Tiger Woods, der natürlich auch wieder am Start ist. Er startet gemeinsam mit Ernie Els und Justin Rose um 8:05 Uhr Ortszeit (13:05 Uhr unserer Zeit) von Tee 10. Die „Börse“ beträgt 6.200.000,- Dollar und der Sieger bekommt 1.080.00,- Dollar. Dafür kann man schon mal ein paar Tage in der Sonne Floridas Golf spielen, oder. Gespielt wird im Bay Hill Club & Lodge aber bevor das Turnier so richtig los geht, macht der Titelverteidiger an einer anderen Ecke „Aktion“!

„Wir sind uns immer näher gekommen“

Der 37 Jahre alte Woods verkündete die neue Romanze eher professionell über sein Facebook-Profil. Nach einem Kurzresümee zu seiner erfolgreichen PGA-Saison schreibt er: „Etwas Nettes, das mir auch widerfuhr: Ich habe Lindsey Vonn getroffen. Wir waren einige Zeit befreundet, doch in den vergangenen Monaten sind wir uns immer näher gekommen, jetzt sind wir zusammen. Vielen Dank für Eure Unterstützung und dafür, dass Ihr unsere Privatsphäre respektiert.”

Auch die 28-jährige Vonn postete gleichzeitig die Schnappschüsse mit ihrem Neuen, sah die Sache mit der Beziehung allerdings etwas pragmatischer. „Ich glaube, dass es nicht gerade ein gut gehütetes Geheimnis war“, schreibt sie. „Aber ja, ich date Tiger Woods.“

Quelle: Bayhill.com

Ich hoffe Ihr nehmt mir den „Klatsch“ nicht übel, aber jetzt wieder zum Turnier.Gespielt wird auf diesem Course einem Par 72 Golfplatz, der auf den ersten neun Löchern mit einem Par 4, Par 3 und Par 4 startet. Auf den zweiten Neun startet man gleich mit zwei Par 4 und einem Par 5 Loch. Die ersten Flights gehen bereits um 7:30 Uhr Ortszeit an den Start und der letzte Flight startet um 14:05 Uhr Ortszeit. Also werden wir erst gehen 19:00 Uhr unserer Zeit wissen, wie die erste Runde verlaufen ist und ab sich der Titelverteidiger gut „fühlt“ 😉 Das Leaderboard könnt Ihr dann ab Donnerstag hier verfolgen.

Hier noch weitere Infos zum Golfplatz aber in Englisch:

Bay Hill Club
Course Par Value: 72
Course Yardage: 7,381
Hole Par Yards
1 4 461 The first hole grabs the player’s attention from the start, as Bay Hill flexes it muscles, beginning with a 461-yard par 4. During Palmer’s 2009 renovation, bunkers 180 yds off the tee to the right were eliminated and converted to rough. Bunkers outside of dogleg were enlarged to provide visibility from the tee. Greenside bunkers were moved closer, deepened, and flashed higher to frame the green. Interior of the old green surface was replicated and the edges softened to provide better hole locations closer to the bunkers.
2 3 231 The second hole is a long par 3 at 231 yards and is typical of all the par 3s on the course. This is the second-longest par 3 on the course, but plays slightly downhill. One of the few „major“ changes during the 2009 renovation, this green was rotated 30 degrees clockwise to enable players to hold long iron and woods into green. With the green now rotated and back tee expanded, this hole can play as long as 245 yards.
3 4 434 The third hole is a 434-yard par 4 that makes a dogleg left around the largest lake on the course, requiring a careful tee shot. Players must know where to place their drives in order to set up the approach to a green that sits at water’s edge over a natural rock wall. Players who misread the wind at No. 2 and didn’t take note will be playing into a crosswind that will force the ball left and into the lake.
4 5 561 The fourth hole is a 561-yard par 4 infested with pesky hazards from tee to green. During Palmer’s 2009 renovation, this hole was converted into a true par 5 without lengthening the hole. This was achieved by moving out the fairway bunkering into the 270-300 yard range, a new lay-up bunker was added to the left of the fairway 100 yards from the green to guard the lay up area, bunkers adjacent the the green were re-configured, a reduced green size with an elevated green surface with tightly mown surrounds and deep bunkers.
5 4 390 No. 5 is the shortest par 4 on the front nine at 390 yards, but the premium is on an accurate short-iron approach to a convex green. The tee shot is most tricky in order to avoid the bunkers scattered on each side of a narrow landing area. Players who hit a safe tee shot and follow with a tight iron shot are looking at 3.
6 5 555 The sixth hole is always a topic of conversation. The 555-yard par 5 curls around the lake players first saw at No. 3. This hole produces some eagles, a few birdies and some scores that resemble telephone numbers.
7 3 199 The seventh hole, the shortest par 3 on the course at 199 yards, provides some relief. Most players will take a mid-iron into the slightly uphill par 3 but the large green offers a variety of pin positions beyond the bunkers that front the green.
The final two holes on the front nine are par 4s that make a par-par finish look pretty good.
8 4 460 No. 8 is a 460-yard dogleg right with a bunker on the left side. A grove of trees forces a tee shot aimed to the left into a landing area shaped like a saddle. The approach is over a small lake to a right-to-left sloping green that requires a longer carry the farther left you aim.
9 4 474 The longest of the par 4s at Bay Hill,this subtle dogleg left requires a long-iron or fairway metal to a large, well-guarded green framed by rear mounds. Players take par here, get to the back nine and don’t look back.
10 4 400 The tenth is a 400-yard par 4. The long hitters will take their tee shots over a series of bunkers in the elbow of the dogleg right to set up a short-iron shot to a two-tiered green.
11 4 438 No. 11 is similar in design to the third hole. The only difference on the 438-yard par 4 is a slightly more open target area off the tee. The diagonally situated green brings the lake into play on left pin placements and the bunkers into play on right hole locations.
12 5 574 Players can step on the gas at the 574-yard, par-5 12th hole. In Palmer’s 2009 renovation, the old shaping and mounds that blocked views into the bunkers and green complex were removed. The lay-up shot sets up an approach with a wedge. The green is heavily protected by bunkers to thwart off any thought of running the second shot up.
13 4 370 The 13th offers a brief respite for short hitters at only 370 yards. Before Palmer’s 2009 renovation there were three hidden fairway bunkers on the left side of the golf hole. During the renovation this bunker complex was reshaped to include two highly visible bunkers that were shifted and repositioned closer to the fairway to become more in play off the tee. The demand is placed on the short-iron approach to the wide, shallow green. A lake that will surely catch any misfires fronts the putting surface.
14 3 215 No. 14 is a slightly uphill par 3 of average length at 215 yards. The key to making birdie here is an accurate tee shot. Before Palmer’s 2009 renovation, 90% of the bunkers on this hole were not visible from the tee and neither was the green surface. The old green had sharp rolls along the edge that did not allow for perimeter pin locations or pins behind the bunkers. The front right bunker complex was eliminated and a tightly mown grass slope along the entire right side of the green was created. The left greenside bunkers were reshaped and moved closer to the green to better protect pin locations on the left side of this green. The greenside bunkers behind the green were reshaped, made visible and shifted closer to the green surface to protect back right and back left pin locations. The green surface has been smoothed out to allow for more pinnable space but still retains a hint of the old green contours.
15 4 429 The dogleg-right, 429-yard, par-4 15th hole features magnolia trees on both sides of the landing area. These heavy leaved trees help narrow the preferred driving area. The approach is to a large green that rolls softly, making long putts most treacherous.
16 5 511 The 16th Hole is the beginning of a three-hole stretch to the clubhouse that is among the best in golf.
17 3 221 The 17th hole is another good opportunity to gain ground or lose control. The elevated tee is 221 yards from a green that’s surrounded by water on three sides while bunkers protect the left. During Palmer’s 2009 renovation, the most dramatic change on this hole is the expansion of the beach bunker. The green was shifted seven to ten feet to allow for the beach bunker to be reshaped and contoured for drainage, playability and visibility. A rather small green by Bay Hill standards, it is firm and fast, making birdie a premium.
18 4 458 The finishing hole looks simple on paper. At 458 yards, the par-4 18th hole is straight away to a wide fairway, but that’s where simple ends. The large, kidney shaped green is fronted by rocks and water, requiring a longer carry to the right half. The bunkers left of the green await errant shorts of the hydrophobic. This hole is the 9th hole in the Kodak Challenge competition which celebrates the most beautiful and memorable holes in golf.

Zu Schluß noch ein paar Bilder und ein Video für Euch. Ihr wollt Euch ja bestimmt auf dieses Turnier einstimmen, oder? 😉

Euer Stephan

Golf Top100