Bay Hill becomes a par-70
Is Par Just A Number?
Bay Hill Club and Lodge has been a mainstay on the PGA Tour since 1979, but the course will look a little different this time around.
That's because for this week's Arnold Palmer Invitational, it will play to a par of 70 -- rather than 72 -- for the first time, as the fourth and 16th holes have been converted from par-5s into par-4s.
Is it a good move? Does it matter? Our experts give their opinions in this edition of Fact or Fiction.
Bob Harig, contributor, ESPN.com: FICTION. It's not necessarily wrong, but that doesn't make it right, either. Palmer decided to make two relatively benign par-5s into par-4s. That means the winning score in relation to par likely will be higher. It also might cause some mental anguish for players who like to make birdies. In the end, it doesn't matter, and if those par-5s play too difficult as par-4s, then another story emerges.
Jason Sobel, golf editor, ESPN.com: FACT. Really, the score in relation to par means absolutely nothing -- it's the score in relation to other competitors' scores that's important -- but if it's all about keeping the winning total in the single digits, there are two options: Trick up the course and make it more difficult, or turn some par-5s into par-4s. Palmer chose the correct option.
Ron Sirak, executive editor, Golf World: FACT. Let's face it, 500-yard holes are now par-4s. In fact, most courses now are really par-68 tracks.
John Antonini, senior editor, Golf World: FICTION. In stroke-play events, you play to an aggregate score, so it doesn't matter what par is. Whether a player birdies a par-5 or makes par on a par-4, it's still the same total. Par is just a number, and this seems like change for change's sake.
Harig: FICTION. Golf fans, most weeks, like to see birdies. And most of them occur on par-5s. To have only two instead of four lessens those chances. An excellent risk/reward par-5 is even better, as a good shot might lead to an eagle but taking a risk could mean a bogey and giving up two shots to the field.
Sobel: FICTION. Contrary to what some would believe, the game isn't so easy that courses with a par of 72 automatically turn into birdiefests for the PGA Tour's best players. Let 'em play the courses the way they're supposed to be played.
Sirak: FICTION. Actually, par should be abolished. It is merely a suggestion, an arbitrary number chosen as a guide. The winner is the player who makes the fewest strokes, no matter what par is.
Antonini: FICTION. Doing so would eliminate the excitement factor involved with going for the green on short par-4s, and there's nothing wrong with adding a little excitement to a tournament.
