Course Proud: Cherry Hills Country Club

David Duval breaks down what the players can expect to see at Cherry Hills

David Duval

As a member of both Cherry Hills and the PGA Tour, I think the players are really going to enjoy competing at the BMW Championship. Most of us love playing the old-school courses that aren’t spread out over hundreds of acres. It’s far more intimate.

Cherry will play fairly short, but it’s a chess-type golf course. You have to move your ball to positions to score well. I hope the golf course plays firm and fast. I know that’s how Superintendent Mike Burke and his staff would like it. That will make it harder for the big hitters to keep it in the fairway—especially on holes 4, 5, 10, 14 and 16—so you’ll see a lot of guys playing down with long irons off the tee, playing into the routing of the course and not trying to overpower it.

Actually, if the PGA Tour will let them, I hope Mike and his crew get it brick-hard, so the ball will roll and run. I also hope we don’t get a lot of rain because a juicy fairway without roll widens the driving area considerably. I don’t think anyone’s ever shot better than 10-under for a four-day championship at Cherry. The only way to do that is to stay out of the rough. Even though it’ll be shorter than it would be for a USGA event, ours is some of the toughest stuff I’ve ever played out of. The ball sinks right to bottom even though it’s not very deep, and with all the rain we’ve had this summer, it’s thicker and grabbier than ever.

Most of the holes allow for a variety of approaches. Just about everyone’s going to drive the green on the 346-yard first, but I don’t think too many will try that on the 333-yard third. Some guys might go with a 3-wood up the gap on the left, but most will lay up. Even so, that green is tough to hit with a wedge. And you don’t want to be in that front bunker.

Of the par-3s, I think No. 8, at 276 yards, will be very tough. Depending on the wind, you might see a 3-wood. At a little over 200 yards over water, No. 12 can be trouble for anyone going for the pin. The play is to hit it 30 yards past the hole.

Coming into the 555-yard 17th, some of the longer hitters will try getting on the island green in two by carrying both sets of cross-bunkers. But that hole sets up beautifully for a chip onto the green, and when a birdie chance like that presents itself, you take it.

And then there’s the 18th. At 477 yards, it’s not the toughest hole ever—unless you need a three or four to win. To take the lake out of play, you usually can hit it at the hill to the right and let it roll down. But for this event, the height of grass on the hill won’t allow that. So I don’t see a lot of drivers; more like driving iron or 3-wood, then a mid-iron into the elevated green.

Will the course set up for any particular player? I don’t buy into that. It’s all about who’s on form. You’re telling me Rory’s game doesn’t travel well? Or Rickie’s? Or Phil’s—at least if he shows up like he did at the PGA Championship?

And I’d have obviously loved to have competed on my home course. Going into the Wyndham, the last event before the first FedEx Cup playoff event, I was about 350 points from qualifying for the FedEx. I think I had to win to get in. I felt great, but my 1-under 139 came up one shy of making the cut.

Former World No. 1 David Duval has won 13 PGA Tour events, including the 2001 Open Championship.

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