When Do We Admit it was a Mistake?
The Byron Nelson tournament, honoring one of the game’s greatest, used to be one of the key events on the Texas swing of the PGA TOUR season. For 30 years, it was played at TPC Las Colinas, northwest of downtown Dallas. It was a great stop – the course delivered great outcomes, and, most importantly, it was not a joke.
In 2018, the tournament moved to the newly opened Trinity Forest Golf Club, with the help of Jordan Spieth, one of the club’s most high-profile members. It was an interesting change. The tournament had been played on a tree-lined course for three decades, and was then played on a links-like course (i.e., no trees).
The 2020 tournament was canceled due to the pandemic, and in 2021, it was moved to TPC Craig Ranch, north of Dallas. The TOUR wanted something new, an experiment of sorts, but six years later, it is time to deem that experiment a failure.
The PGA TOUR looks to challenge its players each week. Given how long the players are today, very low scores are becoming more common. But then there are really low (like super low) scores that beg the question as to why the TOUR is still playing at a given course. In the first five playings of the Byron Nelson at TPC Craig Ranch, the highest winner’s score was 23-under. That’s averaging nearly six-under-par per day. Last year, Scottie Scheffler won by eight shots, at 31-under.
After last year’s absurd winning score, the club tapped former player Lanny Wadkins to carry out a $25 million renovation of the course to make it tougher for the pros, by lengthening the course, shrinking the greens and tightening the bunkers.
So, how much tougher did the course play this year? On Friday, Si Woo Kim missed a birdie putt from 59 and ended up shooting an 11-under 60. And Wyndham Clark won the tournament at 30-under par, after shooting an 11-under 60 in the final round.
After six years, back-to-back years with winners at 30-under or better and at least $25 million in changes, it is safe to say the TPC Craig Ranch experiment has been a failure.