With the 2012 British Open set to begin on Thursday, one of the biggest story lines heading into the championship is the difficulty of the courses' rough. Tigers Woods, the early odds favorite to win the tournament, even came out and said that the rough is 'almost unplayable,' which was a sentiment shared by other players as well.
Peter Dawson, the chief executive of the Royal & Ancient came to the course's defense and set the record straight.
Via The Guardian:
"The rough is up but the course is reasonably generous on width and most of the players seem happy with it, at least those I have spoken to, maybe 20 or so," Dawson said. "It's nature. We are not starting bailing rough on seaside courses. It grows in the month before the championship. Some years we have a dry summer [and] you get wispy rough; in wetter warmish conditions you get thick rough and a softer course. We don't cut the rough other than the first and second cut."
With rain in the forecast for the days leading up to the start of the tournament it's safe to say the rough issue should be present in this year's tournament.
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