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Scott_Park

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Spectating advice for the PGA at Kiawah
« on: August 07, 2012, 09:20:10 AM »
This is primarily directed at Mike Vegis, but if anyone else has some insight on the best viewing areas and/or how the flow of spectators will be managed given the dunes, I'd love to hear it.  One immediate question- since each nine is out and back will there be cross walks that allow people to cut back and forth between the out holes and the in holes?

Thanks,

Scott


Tom ORourke

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re: Spectating advice for the PGA at Kiawah
« Reply #1 on: August 07, 2012, 08:02:59 PM »
My wife and I were at the Ryder Cup there. There were not really grandstands in many places then so there will be differences, but we found behind the second green to be good as you can watch the tee shots on three as well. There was also a good mound across the water from #17 where we sat. You can find areas to cut across once you get past #11 green as you are not far from 16 and 17 at that point. It was not an easy walk and we found that the further you got out on the course, numbers 5 and 14, were usually less crowded. We will be there Tursday and Friday so I am anxious to see as well. Good luck.

mike_beene

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re: Spectating advice for the PGA at Kiawah
« Reply #2 on: August 07, 2012, 08:42:31 PM »
How far is it from 9 green to 10 tee?

Tom ORourke

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Re: Spectating advice for the PGA at Kiawah
« Reply #3 on: August 07, 2012, 09:45:57 PM »
How far is it from 9 green to 10 tee?

It is a hike. At the Ryder Cup they carted the players from 9 to 10. Not sure about the Senior PGA. It is a good time to drop back a group or get lunch. Everything else is fairly close from green to tee but you will be walking some long routes to the second shots. Then-player David Feherty said it was a course where you hit a 300 yard drive and then had to walk 450 yards to get to it. Not quite, but not far wrong either.

Mike Vegis @ Kiawah

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re: Spectating advice for the PGA at Kiawah
« Reply #4 on: August 08, 2012, 08:21:29 AM »
Grandstands to right side of 18 green (near ocean), seating on grass hill around 17 green, grandstand on left of No.16, grandstand behind 12 and 15 and grandstands behind and next to first tee are all open to the public. Yes, we will be shuttling the players between 9s...  Hopefully, this tropical system will move through.  Don't want the "Pour by the shore!"

Howard Riefs

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re: Spectating advice for the PGA at Kiawah
« Reply #5 on: August 08, 2012, 09:47:06 AM »
“I don’t know how the spectators are going to get around this place,” Tiger Woods. “First of all, I don’t know how they’re going to get to it.”

Bloomberg News explores the challenging logistics for spectators...

http://www.sfgate.com/business/bloomberg/article/PGA-Championship-s-30-000-Face-Two-Lane-Access-3771599.php#ixzz22xgSI7yE
"Golf combines two favorite American pastimes: Taking long walks and hitting things with a stick."  ~P.J. O'Rourke

Tom ORourke

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re: Spectating advice for the PGA at Kiawah
« Reply #6 on: August 11, 2012, 12:53:27 AM »
My wife and I just spent Thursday and Friday at Kiawah and it was not a good viewing experience on a few levels. Part of my feeling on that is that many of the spectators are a little older. After all, you need some money to get to, and stay near, Kiawah. SOme of them went out early on Thursday to see the back nine. Very hot. Eventually they get to the front nine, probably feeling a little tired. Off they go down the first fairway, only to find that there are no grandstands on the front nine other than at the first tee. Zero. No place to sit down as they slog out past 2, 3, 4 to 5. You can only sit on the ground. That is what I did today, and I am totally covered in sand. So are many, many spectators. It was a point of contention on the bus going out today as anyone who decided to sit looked like a salted pretzel. Couldn't a few small bleachers, like from a grade school gym, been put out there? Also, many of the marshalls are clueless. There is a nice grove of trees behind the 7th tee with a good view of the 6th green. A lot of people brought chairs. 3 marshalls then stood between the fans and the green, never getting out of the way, never turning around, just raising their arms when players were putting. And they stood together, forming a wall, so the people sitting were now standing up and trying to see around them. At least the marshalls got a good look at the play. We followed a group that included a club pro and a pro from England. After the ninth hole the players got into carts, and the 1/2 mile ride to the tenth tee commenced. There was no cart for their wives who got left behind to try to catch up with them later. The wives decided they were going to the clubhouse to get some ice cream and then walk down 18 and go backwards to catch up with them at some point. Apparently no thought given to them. Also, not enough trash cans. There is a lot of trash just being dropped as people are getting fed up with carrying their trash for 20 minutes without passing a trash bin. There are a number of holes where you can't get close to tees that is mostly a function of the layout, but that is still a little frustrating. Just not a great spectating course. But also not well set up, not well marshalled. The bussing of spectators had a few glitches but not too bad. Overall I would give it a C. The course looks great but it is often tough to get around it as the front nine is not spectator friendly.

mike_beene

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re: Spectating advice for the PGA at Kiawah
« Reply #7 on: August 11, 2012, 01:08:26 AM »
Is this the first mid round shuttle in the history of the majors?

Joel Zuckerman

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re: Spectating advice for the PGA at Kiawah
« Reply #8 on: August 11, 2012, 07:58:04 PM »
Here is my spectating advice: watch it on television.

Long walks, tough shuttle system, really tough traffic to and from the island, no shade, raised greens where it's hard to see the putting surface.... if you have access to a skybox you can sit in air conditioning and watchi on TV, but for the hoi polloi it is not exactly first rate in terms of a viewing experience.

mike_beene

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re: Spectating advice for the PGA at Kiawah
« Reply #9 on: August 11, 2012, 09:09:46 PM »
How did they get the spectators to safety or out of there today when the storm came in?

Joel Zuckerman

  • Karma: +0/-0
Re: Spectating advice for the PGA at Kiawah
« Reply #10 on: August 11, 2012, 09:17:48 PM »
I was on the grounds from seven until one, so luckily I missed the whole storm situation.. as I was driving south, about 20 miles towards Savannah from Kiawah,, the sky got awfully dark and before too long it was sheeting down rain

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