I have some very fond memories of Doral’s Blue Monster, which is where I secured my best finish in a World Golf Championship event in 2009. I finished fourth there, and I loved every moment on what is considered one of the toughest golf courses in the world.
I was in contention there briefly the year before as well, but a double bogey on my last hole in the second round denied me sole possession of the lead at the halfway stage, and I did not make much movement on the last two days.
However, from what I have been hearing, I won’t be able to recognise architect Dick Wilson’s masterpiece. Real estate moghul Donald Trump purchased the property a couple of years ago, and I must give him credit for putting in lots of money and trying to spruce things up at what is an iconic American course.
The redesigning, or renovation, was done by Gil Hanse, a name which is quite well known now. Hanse is also designing the Rio 2016 Olympic course, and I am sure golf fans in Dubai and the UAE are quite excited because he is also the man behind the upcoming Trump International course here.
I have great regards for Hanse, who is imaginative in his design, and who will not go out of his way to make a golf course ‘silly difficult’.
There is a great variety in the 18 holes that make up his golf courses. So, I am sure the quality field assembled there this week for the WGC-Cadillac Championship will love the new challenge thrown to them. Obviously, having won the Scottish Open on a golf course designed by him, I’d think the new Blue Monster course will still suit my eyes.
Tiger Woods has always played well at Blue Monster, but there are serious question marks over the state of his fitness, having had to withdraw from last week’s Honda Classic with back spasms.
Even if Tiger decides to play the event, my favourites for the week are Rory McIlroy and Dustin Johnson. Length off the tee, especially if you are driving well, is a huge advantage at the Blue Monster, and these two guys have been using the big stick pretty well.
McIlroy, I am sure, would have been extremely disappointed with his final round at the Honda Classic. It was a tournament he should have won, but to shoot a four-over par on the final day, and then lose in a playoff, is not very McIlroy like. The good thing is that he is back in being contention on a regular basis, and I am hoping he is angry and wants to take it out on a golf course.
I’d also be very keen to see how Jason Day and Victor Dubuisson – the two finalists at the WGC-Accenture Match Play – fare this week.
It’s a completely different format, and very few players have done well in Doral after a good performance at Dove Mountain. But Day is playing some sensational golf at the moment, and so is Dubuisson.
— Jeev Milkha Singh is a four-time champion on the European Tour
