Tough courses to master

No one seems to be having much fun in the majors except the guys who leave with the trophy.

The cheers were muted at Augusta National, where frigid temperatures and bone-dry conditions made it the highest-scoring Masters in more than 50 years. Birdies were rare until Sunday, and even a 69 by Zach Johnson wasn’t enough to allow him to break par over 72 holes. Jack Burke Jr. in 1956 was the last player to win a green jacket with black numbers next to his name.

Oakmont was even worse.

Already regarded as the toughest championship course in America, it became a sheer brute with gnarly rough framing narrow fairways that led to slick, scary greens. Tiger Woods was the runner-up, despite making one birdie over the final 32 holes. Angel Cabrera won at 5 over par.

Next up is Carnoustie, which is no cupcake.

Forgotten amid the debacle of Jean Van de Velde’s collapse in 1999 was the winning score of 290, the highest for a British Open since 1947.

“It’s not a good year for the stroke average,” Nick Faldo said.

Indeed, this is shaping up as the toughest year in the majors since the Masters was created in 1934.

Odds are Carnoustie won’t be as nasty as it was eight years ago, when a superintendent shrunk the fairways and grew the grass, and the number of complaints was almost higher than the winning score.

One of the more famous lines was delivered by David Duval.

“If the average player had to play out there, he’d probably quit the game,” Duval said. “A lot of pros, too.”

Not many would argue that majors are supposed to be the hardest. They should identify who played the best golf.

But with two champions who couldn’t break par, it raises the question of whether the majors are getting out of hand.

Jim Hyler, head of the championship committee at the USGA, preached all week at Oakmont that the mission was to create a “rigorous test” at the U.S. Open, but he offered a peculiar defense when 35 players failed to break 80 in the second round.

“The players’ scores mean nothing to us,” he said. “Absolutely nothing.”

But if that’s the case, how does he know the test has been rigorous?

“We’re not performing in front of judges,” Justin Leonard said. “They don’t rate every shot. How can you not look at scores?”

The Royal & Ancient paid more attention to the players’ reactions than their scores, and chief executive Peter Dawson conceded that Carnoustie was too extreme in 1999.

“To be honest, we regard player reaction as very important,” Dawson said. “The reaction there was clearly more negative than we would liked to have seen.”

What to expect this time?

“We are not seeking carnage,” Dawson said. “We’re seeking an arena where the players can display their skills to the best effect.”