It was Proper Windy, or if you prefer, Goofy Golf. Castle Stuart’s reputation as an easy touch in preparation for the Open Championship was literally blown away by the conditions the Moray Firth course was made for in the opening round of the Aberdeen Asset Management Scottish Open.
Gusting to 40 mph out of the west, this was certainly the most concerted example of the true challenge the course is supposed to present since the European Tour first came here in 2011.
There’s not going to be a 20-under winning score this year; three-under, returned by Chile’s Felipe Aguilar and Australia’s Scott Hend during the morning wave, was good enough to lead by a shot yesterday.
This was the prevailing wind – a little more extreme than usual, perhaps – that Gil Hanse had in mind when he designed the course. We’d probably had it once before in the three previous visits to Castle Stuart for the Scottish Open, but never as challenging as this.
The top names, mostly shoehorned into the afternoon wave of starters, caught the worst of it, with that golf-specific word “oscillation” muttered by many.
Unlike the R&A in similar winds in last year’s Open, however, the Tour had read the forecast and wisely not shaved the greens to stupid stimp speeds, leaving them alone yesterday morning and Wednesday. As a result play went uninterrupted.
Hometown hero Russell Knox certainly though it was borderline, and openly criticised some of the tee boxes – the 18th in particular, which he bogeyed – as being unfair.
“I didn’t agree with that, a 600-yard hole into that wind,” he said. “You’re hitting driver, 3-wood, five-iron and still not reaching. They could have easily moved up that tee today.
“I hit three good shots and three bad putts, I guess.”
Knox did however agree that it was good play hadn’t been stopped, although his group had a long wait on the 12th when Ryan Evans, a late call into the event after the withdrawl of BMW PGA champion Chris Wood, asked for a ruling as his ball wobbled.
“It’s the same for everyone,” said Knox. “The greens were perfect for that wind because while they did wobble a bit on some of the exposed greens, we could keep playing. I think they must have been close to calling it, because it was very close to being unplayable, but I’m glad they didn’t.”
Five and half hours to get round was about as quick as they could have done in the conditions, he said, with players backing off for gusts of wind.
“It was a guessing game, you’re pulling clubs and hoping for the best. It’s goofy golf in windy conditions like this. It felt like we were out there for ten hours.
“But a day like this, it’s easy to get it away from you. My swing didn’t feel unbelievably good, but I hung in there and although I would have loved to have shot under par even par is still pretty good.”
Knox did a pretty good job at keeping his ball in play on his way to his par round of 72, one of the few in the afternoon wave to finish reasonably placed. The others were Padraig Harrington, again showing his mastery of the wind with a 70, and Branden Grace, much fancied to win here either this week or next, who didn’t bogey a hole until the 13th and finished with a 71.
Harrington didn’t drop a shot on the back nine, showing how his famous powers of concentration are unshaken by mentally demanding weather conditions like these.
“I wish I played every tournament round of golf in these sort of conditions,” said the twice Open champion. “It required your attention out there, but it seemed very playable. There’s openings in the front of every green. There weren’t any hidden pin positions.
“I’m exhausted. Four days of this would be tough but yeah, I’d love to play golf like this every day of my life.”
Other notables who survived the conditions to be well placed are Rafael Cabrera Bello, third in the Race to Dubai, with a 71, former champion (at a very different venue) Edoardo Molinari, out first and in with a par 72, and a trio of young Englishmen Andy Sullivan, Eddie Pepperell and Tyrell Hatton, all not that long out of amateur golf and playing windy links regularly, and all shotting two-under 70s.
Meanwhile Phil Mickelson struggled round to a four-over 76, but the 2013 champion – when he won at 17-under with a couple of 66s – wants more of this.
“I would prefer it like this for the next three days,” he said, saying it was his putting that wasn’t up to the job. “It was tough but I think this course is so well-designed that it can accommodate difficult conditions. I thought it was very playable even in such challenging conditions.
“I thought it was a fun, fair test. I enjoy coming over here and playing stuff like this, especially with a golf course that doesn’t beat you up under these conditions.”
It’s the same forecast for today, strong winds throughout the day and getting up to peak speed in the afternoon.
