Major test: PGA Championship’s long fairways

CHASKA, Minn. (AP) — Paul Azinger pulled the driver from his bag because there really is no other option at Hazeltine. The sign post on the opening hole has two words and two sets of numbers that serve as a not-so-subtle welcome to the PGA Championship.

490 yards. Par 4.

If that’s not enough, the wind was in his face.

A stream of fans were crossing the fairway about 200 yards off the tee, and as a marshal frantically waved his arms to stop the traffic, Azinger told him not to worry. He figured even he could keep the ball in the air that long, and he then ripped a shot that traveled well over their heads.

No need to put the cover back on the driver or any of the fairway metals for most players in the PGA Championship.

The final major gets under way today, already in the record books without a single shot having been hit that counts on the card. Hazeltine National measures an official 7,674 yards, making it the longest course in major championship history.

Scott Verplank, who is more on the short side of driving distance, was asked how many players could talk about Hazeltine without mentioning length or some variation of the word. “Zero,” he said.

“The best hole on the course is No. 16, and it’s the second-shortest hole,” he said of the 402-yard signature hole that runs along Hazeltine Lake. “The shortest one is No. 14, the one the same length as the par 3 before it.”

The PGA Championship bills itself as “Glory’s Last Shot” because it is the final chance of the year to win a major. That takes on particular significance for Tiger Woods, whose five victories this year do not include the kind he covets the most.

The world’s No. 1 player came close seven years ago at Hazeltine, closing with four straight birdies to finish one shot behind Rich Beem. The course was a mere 7,360 yards for the 2002 PGA Championship. Woods couldn’t help but notice the difference.

“Oh, man,” he said when asked what he had seen of the course. “It’s a heck of a lot longer than what we played in 2002. It’s going to be a great test all week. You’re going to have to hit the ball pretty good here.”

Hazeltine gets most of its length in the par 5s, the shortest of which is 572 yards and might be the only one where players can try to reach in two shots. Conveniently enough, the left side of the green is guarded by water.

The others are 633 yards (No. 3), 606 yards (No. 11) and 642 yards (No. 15).

The defending champion is Padraig Harrington, who showed his return to form in a spirited duel that Woods won last week at Firestone. Phil Mickelson missed the British Open while tending to his wife’s battle with breast cancer, and he’s hopeful of ending his turbulent summer on a high note.

Masters champion Angel Cabrera, U.S. Open champion Lucas Glover and British Open champion Stewart Cink already have hit their high and are looking for more.

Cabrera would figure to have the best chance because he has been pounding the driver lately, so his answer was no surprise when asked he like the golf course.

“Si,” he replied.

And why is that?

“Es largo,” Cabrera said, which translates simply to “It’s long.”