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Bubba Watson

Big hitter Bubba Watson shines at TPC Scottsdale

Steve DiMeglio
USA TODAY Sports

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — Imagine if Bubba Watson liked TPC Scottsdale.

PGA golfer Bubba Watson hits out of the sand on the 18th hole during the  second round of the Waste Management Phoenix Open at TPC Scottsdale on Jan. 30, 2015.

Judging from his résumé at the Waste Management Phoenix Open, one would naturally think the big-hitting lefty feels right at home on TPC Scottsdale. After all, he has never finished one of his 34 tournament rounds here on the wrong side of par. He has signed his scorecard for rounds under par 29 times. And he has tied for second in the Phoenix Open the past two years and tied for fifth in 2012.

But when asked what it is about the course that makes him like it so much, Watson’s answer came before the question was finished.

“I don’t like it,” he said Wednesday after the pro-am. “I’m not going to PC it. I don’t like it at all.”

His fondness for the course nosedived with the redesign led by architect Tom Weiskopf that was finished just before last year’s tournament. All the greens were resurfaced and all the bunker complexes reshaped. The course was lengthened and some of the fairways were tightened. Watson pointed out the par-4 14th hole, which plays 490 yards uphill.

“I didn’t see any reason to change it,” Watson said. “Again, they didn’t ask me. It’s just my own opinion. I didn’t see any reason to change it. ...

“So to me it just seems like all they did is tightened it up. It just makes it goofier and tougher, which is not fun for us. We came here for a reason. We came here because we want to play golf and shoot good scores. ... I didn’t see there is a reason to change something that’s not broke.”

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At least Watson did say the course was in the best shape he’d ever seen it. It also favors length. And the course provides the perfect canvas. With the emerald fairways and greens framed by dormant Bermuda grass, Watson sees eye-popping and unobstructed targets. It’s a similar look to Augusta National, where the targets are framed by pine straw and trees. And always the artist with his golf clubs, he can fade, hook or sky the golf ball to his liking.

“Realistically the golf course is built for me, built for big hitters,” Watson said. “Look at the last few years, big hitters have won. I feel like I have a shot if I can keep my head on straight. Obviously my record shows around here. I’m hitting the ball really good.”

Chip-in: Kevin Kisner was striping one 3-wood after another down the range Tuesday when he looked to his caddie, Duane Bock, and said, “Why am I hitting 3-woods?”

Kisner, who has a place down the road, has been practicing at TPC Scottsdale for more than a week and has come to change his strategy for the Phoenix Open. Because of the firmness of the greens — and frost delays the past two days and two more frosty mornings expected — Kisner said he will hit driver all day long to get the ball far down the fairways to set up the shortest irons possible that he can hit into the greens.

“I’d rather have 9-iron going into the green instead of 6-iron,” Kisner said. “The greens are so hard right now.”

If there are frost delays the first two rounds, the greens will stay very firm for at least two hours after play begins. Once it’s warm enough to start, players and caddies will take note on the first two holes they hit into and check how big the “freeze” bounce is and adjust from there.

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