Can Couples go back to back at Shell Houston Open?

BY Bruce Young | US PGA Tour | 2004 Shell Houston Open | Preview | 21 Apr 2004

Following its debut last year as the tournament venue for the Shell Houston Open, the Redstone Golf Club in Humble on the outskirts of Houston, gets another chance to impress this week when it stages the event for the second time.

In 2006 the tournament moves again, but this time to the adjacent Rees Jones designed layout in the same golf club precint and, with the Houston Golf Association recently establishing its headquarters here, it is likely to become a permanent home for the tournament in future years. Well, as permanent as professional golf events can be that is. Mind you, not that the Houston Open has had a history of venue changes or a lack of longevity. The last venue, TPC at the Woodlands was home to the event for eighteen years and the event itself, has a history going back to 1946 when Byron Nelson won at River Oaks Country Club, beating Ben Hogan by two shots.

Opened just last year, the Redstone Golf Club measures some 7500 yards and is a combination of the old and the new. Many holes are redesigns from the old El Dorado Country Club and extra holes added by the design team of PGA Tour pro, Peter Jacobsen and one of the foremost golfing teachers in the US, Jim Hardy. The greens are Tifeagle, the same that used last week at Harbour Town, with the fairways another Bermuda variety in Tifsport, both over-seeded with ryegrass.

The defending champion Fred Couples arrived in Houston this week with his confidence boosting 6th place at the Masters an indication of just where he is at with his game right now. He missed the cut at the Players Championship but a 15th place at Bay Hill a week earlier, indicates that his form is on par with his lead in form in 2003. If that means anything then it may just be that we see the first back to back winner in the history of this event. His win last year was by four shots over Stuart Appleby, Mark Calcavecchia and Hank Kuehne.

With little to go on historically in terms of form at the venue, other than the one tournament last year, it will pay to keep an eye on those in good form currently and those with who played well here last year. While tournaments played on long golf courses are not always won by long hitters (example Jose Maria Olazabal at Torrey Pines in 2002, David Toms, Wachovia Championship 2003 and Kirk Triplett, Renoe Tahoe 2003) there appeared a bias towards the longer hitter here last year. Couples, who is more than adequate in that category, headed the game’s longest hitter, Kuehne, Appleby and Calcavecchia who at age 43 is still sneaky long. Also in the mix last year, finishing in 7th place, was the game’s second longest hitter statistically, John Daly with Vijay Singh who finished 9th in 2003, very much one of the longer hitters going around.

Players who may destroy that theory are Jay Haas who was fifth here last year and is playing great at present, Jeff Maggert who was 6th last year, Alex Cejka who was 21st here last year but appears close to something special and Zach Johnson who, at last week’s Heritage Classic, would have spent more time shaking hands with friends and others for his win at BellSouth than perhaps working on his game. Having not played the Masters, the MCI Heritage was Johnson’s first tournament back after the BellSouth so we can forgive him the one bad week. With that out of the way, look to another good week here.

One player who will also gain some attention is the current star of the Nationwide Tour, Jimmy Walker who already has two Nationwide Tour titles to his name in 2004 and plays here on invitation. He gets his chance to display his talent on a bigger stage this week in preparation for his full time role on the USPGA Tour, either later in 2004 or next year.

Of the Australasians, Robert Allenby, who won this event in 2000 is here, although since his fourth at the Honda he has been off the boil a little. Also lining up will be Steve Allen, Aaron Baddeley, Steve Elkington, long hitter Scott Hend, Mark Hensby, Geoff Ogilvy who seems to be getting better every week and who played well here last year, Rod Pampling, Craig Perks, John Senden, Andre Stolz and Grant Waite.

A surprising absentee is last year’s runner up and 1999 champion, Stuart Appleby.