Bethpage Black is a thorough test

The answer, unlike the golf course, was short.

Which is the hardest hole at Bethpage Black?

“One through 18,” David Duval replied. “There’s no letup.”

If you’ve followed Duval’s career, you might snicker and think: Yeah, every hole’s hard for him. The 2001 British Open champion has made only one U.S. Open cut since 2002, and his best finish in 13 PGA Tour starts this year is a tie for 55th.

But Duval speaks for the masses, including Tiger Woods.

While Woods identified the 458-yard, dogleg-left 15th as the toughest hole at the 2009 U.S. Open, he added, “They’re all hard. This is probably the most difficult golf course we’ve faced from tee to green. This golf course is all you want.”

Here are some terms you’ll hear this week to describe the 7,445-yard, par-70 monster:

Long

Bethpage played at 7,214 yards for the 2002 Open, and only Woods broke par, finishing three under. So, naturally, USGA officials decided to lengthen the course. There are now seven par fours of 458 yards or more.

At 525 yards, No. 7 will play eight yards longer than No. 4, which is a par five. That novelty is a first for the U.S. Open.

Wet

Bethpage superintendent Craig Currier is sweating it out -- but not because of sultry conditions. Temperatures didn’t climb past the mid-60s on Tuesday.

Currier’s concern is rain, which is in the forecast. Sloppy conditions would help the players hold long iron shots into greens. But it would make the course play longer and could transform the rough from devilish to satanic.

Fair

Previously, “fair” and “U.S. Open” went as well together as “vegan” and “Big Mac.”

But since 2006, when the USGA’s Mike Davis became the Open’s setup czar, the number of player complaints have tumbled. Among Davis’ calling cards: drivable par fours (though not at Bethpage), graduated rough (so players can reach the green after slightly errant tee shots), and generous (by Open standards) landing areas.

“It’s set up perfectly right now,” Rocco Mediate, the Open’s 2008 runner-up, said of Bethpage.

Punishing

Bethpage’s infamous welcome mat has been turned around. The sign that reads “The Black Course is an Extremely Difficult Course Which We Recommend Only For Highly Skilled Golfers” faced the practice green Monday. Now it’s visible from the first tee, providing a final reminder of what lurks ahead.

“If you don’t play good shots,” said 20-year-old Rory McIlroy, who will play in his first Open, “[Bethpage] will punish you. That’s the way it should be.”

And that’s how a U.S. Open should be.

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tgreenstein@tribune.com