Opinion & Analysis

New Blue Monster lives up to the name

Published

12 years ago

Mar 10, 2014

I recently watched the “Seinfeld” episode “The Beard” where George, who happens to be wearing a hairpiece, is set up on a blind date by Kramer with a bald woman. While the whole point of this exchange is to reveal the irony that George is in fact bald, his disappointment as a result of being misled is a lot like what those golfers who played the old Blue Monster for the first time would have felt.

Once upon a time, back when the original Big Bertha and TaylorMade Burner Bubble Shaft Drivers were as revolutionary as Shot Tracker technology is today, the Blue Monster at Doral was in fact deemed a monster by its opponents. Advancements in the technology of equipment and ball design over the last decade slowly transformed the Blue Monster into something more a long the lines of a Pink Labrador.

From 1995 until last year, the average winning score for the second WGC event of the year has been just over 16-under par. This data actually indicates that the Blue Monster at Doral never really played all that difficult, even before the major advancements in golf technology became prominent in the game. It was only really No. 18 (the true Blue Monster), which is still considered one of the best and most difficult finishing holes on Tour and even in the world, that has stood the test as a ferocious golf hole. In fact, in 2012, the 18th hole ranked the hardest finishing hole on Tour and the second toughest hole overall.

Twenty-four hours after Tiger Woods received his winners check at last year’s tournament, which was the seventh WGC Cadillac title of his career, newly acclaimed monarch to the golfing world Donald Trump broke ground on the Doral Resort and began to put his $200 million investment into action. In coordination with Gill Hanse, the designer for the Olympic Golf Course in Rio for 2016, Trump set out to essentially re-construct the Blue Monster and turn it into one the world’s premier golf destinations, a theme among all of his golf properties around the world. Trump had mentioned a few times throughout the week that his vision is to have the Blue Monster host a Major championship one day. With the way we saw The Donald’s new baby play for the first time over Thursday and Friday, in what were extraordinary difficult conditions, the Blue Monster played as difficult as any tournament in the world.

After Round Two, in which not one player in the field broke 70, Graeme Mcdowell said that those were the toughest conditions he has ever seen in the United States.

Here’s a tweet regarding the difficulty of the Blue Monster from Canadian golf writer Rick Young:

Gil Hanse’s ‘new’ course at Trump Doral is kickin some serious PGA Tour tail this week.

— Rick Young (@RickSCOREGolf) March 7, 2014

After just two rounds of play the leading scores were only 1-under, and the eventual winner Patrick Reed came out on top at just 4-under for the week. Similarly, more balls had entered the water after 36 holes than after four full rounds of play in 2013.

So, what’s in a name? Well, the moment you heard that Donald Trump was about to place the gold standard on the Blue Monster, you knew that this golf course and tournament would be taken to a level that is equally as prestigious and respected as the Donald himself. There is nothing he does in life and in business that is not considered the best of the best, and his re-construction of the Blue Monster in Miami was held to that same standard of excellence.

If the fine folks at Seinfeld ever decided to give it another go around, which I clearly would not support for obvious reasons, wouldn’t it be great if George got to meet Trump at Monk’s coffee shop to discuss his new re-design? You can be sure that there would be no surprises on the Donald’s end — what you see is what you get — the dude’s got a full and lustrous head of hair.

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Oliver Berg

Oliver Berg is a golf fanatic whose roots in the game were formed in the rugged and rocky golf links of Southern Ontario, Canada. By putting the pen to paper, or more appropriately, his fingers to the keyboard, Oliver turned his passion for ‘talking golf’ online by starting The High Fade Golf Blog. Oliver works in the digital marketing space in the fashion industry in Toronto and has applied what he’s learned from social media marketing to his own Instagram golf account - @thehighfade. Having grown up in a family of golfers, Oliver was given a special gift at young age from his grandmother -- a pillow that reads “Life’s a game, but Golf is serious” is something that he sleeps beside every night, and he pretty much lives by that!

10 Comments

luke keefner

Mar 12, 2014 at 7:10 pm

I’m not sure how many people are going to want to pony up $450 to shoot a 107. There is no shortage of golf courses in Florida that will challenge you and not break you.

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Cris

Mar 11, 2014 at 10:47 am

Muahahaha. “Best of the best.” “Respected.” “Excellence.” “Prestigious.” “Full and lustrous head of hair.” Donald Trump? I hope you’re being sarcastic. Too funny!

Reply Report comment
Homer

Mar 11, 2014 at 10:12 am

From the sounds of it, Donald was the one who designed the course and Gill just watched.

Watch the documentary about what DT did to those nice people of Scotland.

Reply Report comment
- ND Hickman
  
  Mar 12, 2014 at 6:43 am
  
  Yeah, he’s not very popular here that Trump … in spite of what he says to the news cameras we don’t care for him in the least in Scotland.
  
  Reply Report comment
StraightDriver235

Mar 11, 2014 at 7:43 am

What kind of pulchritude is this piece? Donald Trump has taste? Donald Trump is one of the most deluded and lowest morality people on earth; he is a leader in the “birther” crowd, and this writer is supposed to know about fashion and taste. Is the measure of a golf course how hard it is? Unfortunately Tom Fazio proved that concept wrong many years ago. This is pablum that I cannot understand the bowing and scraping to the Trumpster. He’s pathetic and the course is pathetic. I say this as a connoisseur of classic golf courses, Tillinghasts, Rosses, and Dick Wilsons. He has destroyed an icon of golf, and for what? You used to have a course that was well thought out for its purposes, one tourists could play but that still offered a challenge to the pros. It is not the equipment so much that has rendered the Blue Monster less to par, it is the way the pro game itself is conducted; what this shows is that the pro game has an undue influence on what we call a great golf course. From a maintenance perspective this layout is not ecological, and not worker friendly, either… and Miami is a place that needs both. The idea of the huge many fingered bunker, is so dead and over-bloated; do you know how many maintenance hours are required to keep these monstrosities up? Wilson had a much more minimalist perspective, and Wilson was a master. An important piece of history has been destroyed by a rich dolt lacking in taste and humanism, and by a herd of mindless followers of pro golf frivolity.

Reply Report comment
- Steve
  
  Mar 12, 2014 at 12:55 am
  
  Good points. Golf courses seem to be heading the wrong way and TV for the past 50 odd years is very much responsible. Things are really starting to look like Disneyland out there with absolutely perfectly manicured grounds, overuse of hazards, green speeds approaching 15 on the stimp (which means modern greens have become damn near flat and level). I’m not a golf archietect, but have read a fair share of writings from the classics. Water hazards are great when used in moderation. Doral always had water, but a lot of it was purely aesthetic and added to the charm and worked for this Florida resort. Now tho it seems it is in play on every hole. According to those who wrote the books nearly a century ago, this is poor design. Golf courses should EVOLVE not DEVOLVE. Doral has devolved into a gimmick for TV along w/ a slew of other courses. Not a fan.
  
  Just like an old victorian house, golf courses might need to be deemed historical and clowns shouldn’t be allowed to just come along and remodel them as they desire regardless if they are the owner.
  
  Reply Report comment
John

Mar 11, 2014 at 12:34 am

“As respected as the Donald himself?” The guy is a kook at best, he just happens to be a kook with alot of dough. I, for one don’t respect him in the slightest, and I’m one of many. Looks like Gill Hanse did a nice job with the redo. Let’s leave it at that.

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Thomas Phillips

Mar 10, 2014 at 8:04 pm

Nice Read

Reply Report comment
michael

Mar 10, 2014 at 4:53 pm

Great article – combining 2 of my favorite topics – Golf & Seinfeld

Reply Report comment
paul

Mar 10, 2014 at 2:32 pm

Cool story, fun to read. Good job

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Opinion & Analysis

5 Things We Learned: Thursday at the PGA Championship

Published

2 weeks ago

May 15, 2026

Ronald Montesano

Aronimink is not a storied club, but when Donald Ross himself proclaimed it to be as good as he can design and build, one had to take notice. Jay Sigel was the pre-eminent male amateur golfer from the mid-1970s to the mid-1990s. He might have called any number of Philadelphia clubs home, but he chose Aronimink. It served him well. Gary Player won a PGA Championship here in 1962, and was followed by the 1993 winner … nobody. Aronimink gave that event away to Inverness, for reasons of which it is certainly not proud. So be it. We had to wait sixty-four years for the PGA to return to Newtown Square, but here we are. Aronimink has been neo-restored by Gil Hanse and team, to return Ross features with an eye toward defense against the dark arts, errrr, high-tech equipment.

Day one saw Rory McIlroy and Bryson DeChambeau dig big holes, to the tune of plus-four and plus-six, respectively. Since the first-round lead will be minus-three at worst, many shots will need to be made up for the power couple to reach contention. By nightfall, seven golfers held the day-one lead at three-under par 67. Shots and sticks caught our attention, and we are proud to present Five Things We Learned on Tech Thursday at the 2026 PGA Championship. Thanks to InsideTourGolfer, Today’s Golfer, and GolfWRX for initial equipment research.

First, meet Min Woo Lee

Min Woo Lee, aka Dr. Chipinski, has once again thrust himself into the conversation of Can he, will he, when will he? Lee has so much talent, wins not nearly as often as we believe that he should, and has no major near-misses (much less titles) on his wiki. The young Aussie is getting older and wiser, but is he able to avoid the scarring that holds the older and wiser back from breaking through? Philadelphia offers another opportunity. Min Woo signed for five birdies and two bogeys on day one, and grabbed a share of the opening-day lead at Aronimink. Winners transcend history and the moment, and Lee will need that sort of ascent to lift the Wannamaker on Sunday.

Second, meet Aldrich Potgeiter

The young South African golfer can rip driver with the best of them. Aronimink tips out at nearly 7400 yards, but beyond the fairway bunkers that ensnare only the mortals, Potgeiter can take his chances with wedge from the rough. On Thursday, he spent plenty of time in the spinach. Like Popeye, he used his muscles to gouge and thrash and dig his way out. Six birdies against three bogeys on the card brought AP in a three deep.

Third, meet Martin Kaymer

Not a major event takes place without a where’s he been throwback moment. We know that Martin Kaymer left the PGA and DP World tours for LIV golf, but the two-time (US Open and PGA) major winner has a lifetime exemption into at least one major event, and he seizes the opportunity each May. Kaymer joined the six-seven brigade with four birdies and a solitary bogey on day one. Kaymer was never a long hitter, and the years are kind to no golfer. The German champion will need to uncork every bottle of guile and strategy in his cabinet to remain in contention. For today, though, he occupies a rung on the ladder of Tour Tech.

Fourth, meet Scottie Scheffler

Let’s see, he’s the defending champion at the PGA, and he found his way back to the top tier with five birdies against two bogeys. To be a favorite and then play up to that stature and expectation is quite difficult. Just ask Rory, Bryson, and some of the other pre-tournament heartthrobs. Scheffler’s game is complete, and to knock him off the OWGR #1 pedestal, one needs to defeat him at the majors. Aronimink is the sort of course that fits Scheffler’s game. Better yet, it unfits the game of many of his challengers. Don’t expect Scheffler to go away anytime soon. Come Sunday, he’ll be around.

Fifth, meet Stephan Jaeger

Clocking in for the unheralded players shift are Ryo Hisatsune and Stephan Jaeger. Hisatsune logged seven birdies on day one, but gave most of them back with four bogeys. Still, he’s tied at the top for a time. Jaeger pitched five birdies against two bogeys, including a run of three consecutive, from holes four through six. Odds are that one of the two will hang around through 36 holes. Odds also suggest that both will be gone by Saturday evening. Still, the PGA Championship has historically been the major most likely to be won by an under-known. Both Hisatsune and Jaeger feature on that list, so good luck, lads!

Club Junkie

Club Junkie’s Titleist GTS driver fitting results!

Published

2 weeks ago

May 14, 2026

Brian Knudson

On this episode of the Club Junkie Podcast, I head to the Titleist Performance Institute for a full driver fitting with the new Titleist GTS lineup. We dive into the fitting process, talk about what made the biggest difference in performance, and break down how the different GTS heads and shaft combinations compare on the launch monitor. If you are thinking about a new driver setup for this season, there is a lot to take away from this one.

I also get into Brooks Koepka and the gear setup he brought to the PGA Championship, including the putters that caught my eye during the week. There are some interesting equipment trends showing up at the highest level right now and we break down what stands out.

To wrap things up, I talk about reshafting a few wedges, what I learned during the process, and swapping an adaptor onto a new shaft for another build project in the shop. A gear packed episode from start to finish for anyone who loves golf equipment and club building.

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Club Junkie

Club Junkie WITB, week 16: New Titleist GTS woods!

Published

2 weeks ago

May 14, 2026

Brian Knudson

Excited for this week’s WITB as we get to add the new Titleist GTS woods to the bag! I was fit at Titleist’s TPI facility in Oceanside California a few weeks ago and my new clubs just showed up. I am also adding a cool set of irons that I built last year some wild custom wedges into a new golf bag. Speaking of the bag I have a new Ghost Anyday Black Ops stand bag that I will be using on my Motocaddy Remote M7 electric cart.

Driver: Titleist GTS3 (11 degrees @ 10.25)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Red 6s

3-wood: Titleist GT1 3Tour (14.5 degrees)
Shaft: Graphite Design Tour AD CQ-7s

5-wood: Titleist GTS (18 degrees)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Red 7s

9-wood: Titleist GT1 (24 degress)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Red 7s

Irons: Bettinardi CB24 (5-PW)
Shafts: KBS C-Taper Lite 110 stiff

Wedge: TaylorMade MG5 (50-09 SB)
Shaft: Mitsubishi MMT 125 Stiff

Wedge: TaylorMade MG5 (56-12 SB)
Shaft: Mitsubishi MMT 125 Stiff

Wedge: TaylorMade MG5 (60-08 LB)
Shaft: Mitsubishi MMT 125 Stiff

Putter: Dan Carraher ZT Proto

Ball: Callaway Chrome Tour

Bag: Ghost Anyday Black Ops Stand Bag