Weather or Not

Two days at Oakmont Country Club and two diametrically different weather conditions.

That’s what many LPGA players on hand for the Valley of the Stars Championship have seen since arriving for the $650,000 tournament, which runs Friday through Sunday.

It was wet Tuesday, with rain washing out the Glendale Memorial Shootout, and it was windy and cold Wednesday, the first of two pro-am dates.

But several players said the course is none the worse despite that nasty little storm, and they noted that it’s still plenty difficult.

“I played in the rain and the muck [Tuesday] and I was pretty pleased how dry it was today,” said Cindy McCurdy, returning to Oakmont after a third-place finish last year. “But you get on the back side and the wind can make those holes pretty tough.”

The players certainly don’t need Oakmont to be any tougher. The 6,276-yard course, with its narrow fairways and slick greens, is among the most challenging on the tour.

And among the most unpredictable.

Days before the tour returned to Oakmont in 1997 after a nine-year absence, winds swept through the course, claiming more than 100 trees.

Last year, when it was still known as the Los Angeles Women’s Championship, the event was shortened to 36 holes because of rain.

It is not the place to fall asleep or lose focus under ideal conditions, so any intrusion from the elements makes the task even harder.

“It played tough today,” said Cathy Johnston-Forbes, whose group shot a two-under 70 in the pro-am scramble. “This is by far one of the toughest courses we play all year. You have to drive the ball well and you have to be careful with the placement.

“If you miss the greens on the wrong side, you’re going to have a long day.”

Nobody has to tell that to Emilee Klein, a five-year tour veteran who played at Notre Dame High and was a two-time All-American at Arizona State.

Klein honed her skills at Oakmont after her parents became members about 10 years ago and is quite familiar with the course’s nuances.

“This course will eat you up,” Klein said. “But I love it here. I always feel comfortable on this golf course. . . . It’s a little cold today and you are not going to play like you would normally, but it was a good round.”

Nancy Scranton, in her 15th year on the tour and making her fifth appearance at Oakmont, found the course to her liking in the pro-am. Her group shot 14-under-par 58 in the pro-am, thanks primarily to Scranton’s play.

“The greens are fabulous,” Scranton said. “They’re quick, even after all the rain. They have a lot of undulation.”

Alison Nicholas of England, who joined the tour in 1990, agreed with Scranton.

“The fairways are a little patchy, but the greens are very good,” Nicholas said. “This course is tough, no doubt. You can’t spray your shots here.

“The wind played a factor today. It could be a lot different for the tournament.”

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Hole-By-Hole Breakdown

No. 1 Par 5, 482 yards

‘98 stroke average: 5.062

Dogleg left and a long second shot to a green that is elevated and the most severely sloped (from back to front) on the course. Very few players will reach it in two.

No. 2 Par 4, 338 yards

‘98 stroke average: 4.131

Dogleg left and a challenging drive because of bunkers on both sides--200 yards left and 220 yards right--of the fairway. A tee shot left brings a sycamore tree into play. The green is surrounded by bunkers and dissected by a slight rise.

No. 3 Par 3, 155 yards

‘98 stroke average: 3.170

Among the best par 3s in the Southland. The green is 90 feet deep but only 30 feet wide and is guarded by six bunkers. Tee shots, made more difficult by constant, circling winds, must clear a flood control channel.

No. 4 Par 4, 377 yards

‘98 stroke average: 4.270

Big hitters will cut loose on their drives, but the narrow, tiered and severely sloped green provides a real test. The fairway is wide and fairly straight.

No. 5 Par 4, 334 yards

‘98 stroke average: 4.355

The left rough sets up a better approach shot than the center of the fairway on this S-shaped hole. But too far left ends up in a barranca. A large sycamore tree and four bunkers guard the green.

No. 6 Par 4, 395 yards

‘98 stroke average: 4.440

The toughest hole in the last two tournaments is a dogleg left. Tee shots to the left are tempting because they get more roll--but then trees are likely to come into play. To the right are rolling mounds. The green, which crests in the middle, probably won’t hold many long iron shots.

No. 7 Par 4, 351 yards

‘98 stroke average: 4.201

Even though only about 25 yards separates bunkers on both sides of the approach, this short, straight hole should yield more birdies than any other par four on the course. Going left of the green is about the only mistake to be made.

No. 8 Par 4, 390 yards

‘98 stroke average: 4.266

A flood channel twice dissects the dogleg right fairway--off the tee, then again on the approach to the green. Any drive to the right brings trees and the barranca into play and sets up a blind approach shot. This was voted the toughest hole on the LPGA Tour in 1986.

No. 9 Par 4, 359 yards

‘98 stroke average: 4.185

Second-shot accuracy is more important than the tee shot because the green is very fast. Putts from right to left can break as much as eight feet. Bogies are rare--but so are birdies.

No. 10 Par 4, 378 yards

‘98 stroke average: 4.108

A small but helpless green should yield more than a fair share of birdies on this slight dogleg right. Surrounding bunkers will rarely come into play on short-iron approach shots from about 135 yards.

No. 11 Par 3, 146 yards

‘98 stroke average: 3.120

The small and narrow green is tricky because it slopes in two directions. Reaching it is another challenge caused by three large bunkers--two of them right in front. A short tee shot won’t bounce up.

No. 12 Par 4, 370 yards

‘98 stroke average: 4.286

This was voted the toughest hole on the LPGA tour in 1985. Bunkers are to the right of the uphill fairway, while the left side drops off eight to 10 feet at the green, which is elevated and tiered.

No. 13 Par 4, 380 yards

‘98 stroke average: 4.293

The widest fairway on the course is crossed by two valleys. Tee shots must carry at least 185 yards to clear the first valley. Aggressive drives will reach the downward slope of the second valley and are likely to roll to within 120 yards.

No. 14 Par 3, 156 yards

‘98 stroke average: 3.108

The approach is narrow and the slightly elevated green is difficult to read, appearing to slope back to front when it actually goes from left to right. Hitting long and right is best because of the overall lay of the land.

No. 15 Par 4, 344 yards

‘98 stroke average: 4.158

Driving to the right maximizes roll and leaves a wedge approach from a flat lie. Accuracy is paramount because a flood control channel runs the length of the hole along the right side and the green has a narrow, sloping approach. The green also is deceptively fast from front to back.

No. 16 Par 4, 360 yards

‘98 stroke average: 4.313

Tee shots must clear the flood control channel on this dogleg right, but drives hit too far wind up in a tree line. Playing the right side of this fairway is risky but potentially rewarding on approach to the largest green at Oakmont.

No. 17 Par 5, 521 yards

‘98 stroke average: 5.085

In this case, long doesn’t mean difficult on this slight dogleg right. Three decent shots should set up a good birdie opportunity. The hollow collection area to the right front of the green is the best place to putt.

No. 18 Par 5, 440 yards

‘98 stroke average: 4.888

Players have averaged better than par on this hole the past two tournaments. The fairway is narrow and bunkered on both sides, but the green is reachable in two by most players. Short approach shots don’t spell disaster. There are easy up-and-down birdie opportunities--even from the bunkers.