Open Dye-alogue

Dye’s legacy is secure, and as expressive as the native Ohioan has been with a bulldozer, he is just as outspoken in person. Sitting down for a conversation at the Dye Preserve Golf Club in Jupiter, Florida, Dye had plenty to say about the state of a game to which he and his wife, Alice, both accomplished amateur players, have devoted themselves for nearly 70 years.

You’ve been busy the last few years renovating your own courses. 
It’s an amazing thing. I’ve modified the Tournament Players Club [Sawgrass] three times. Long Cove twice. Harbour Town three times. Crooked Stick twice. The Ocean Course at Kiawah once. Teeth of the Dog in the Dominican Republic, done that twice now. 

It’s quite a racket. No, no! Frankly, it’s a disaster. They do not pay anything. But I have lived long enough to fortunately be asked to go back and improve things. This is why when everyone says that they are going to restore a Donald Ross course, it is the most disrespectful thing that they could ever say about the man. Because if he were alive today he would not do anything like he did, or what people think he did, 80 years ago.

If he saw Brandie Burton hit a driver and a short iron to the 1st hole at Pinehurst, he would put the tee back in the parking lot.

What else would he do? 
Greens and contours and bunkers. None of his bunkers are in play. He would not contour his greens the same because the speeds have changed. I do not think Ross would like to see somebody hit a shot to the 5th hole at Pinehurst and have the ball roll 75 feet off the green, down the hill. He never intended to. That is not part of the game.
 
Let’s say that 60 years from now, somebody looks at your courses and says, “The game has changed since Pete Dye’s day.” Sure. Change it. I hope they bring it to what is playable at the time.

Is a lot of this discussion due to the equipment changing rapidly? God bless the United States Golf Association. They have escalated the cost of maintenance, they have slowed down play, and they have completely lost control of the equipment. Outside of that, they have done a pretty good job.

The equipment does help the higher handicapper a certain amount. Compared to 15 years ago the ball might go two or three percent farther for him. But the ball is going 15 percent farther for the professionals who don’t need the help. 

It’s too bad that golf isn’t more like baseball, where at least they control the ball and bat. Jack Nicklaus could pick up a mule when he was a kid. When they say that the ball is going farther because the players are stronger, I would say look at John Daly who has not done a push-up since 1991 but is hitting the ball 30 yards farther. So it is equipment, no question about it. They really lost control back when Deane Beman tried to get control of the grooves and the USGA and the PGA of America did not jump on his bandwagon.

The other cost escalation the USGA has encouraged is with speed of greens. When Ben Hogan won the U.S. Open at Oakmont [in 1953], then considered the fastest greens in the history of the world, the Stimpmeter was maybe six or seven.
 
One of the things I’m doing in renovating my courses is reducing contour and slope to match today’s speeds. The other thing that used to be so great was the grain on most greens. That was a fun part of the equation. It made a tremendous difference that did not change the playability to the higher handicap golfer, but it greatly impacted the professional.