18 Holes With...

PGA Professional Tom Nieporte
Head Professional
Winged Foot Golf Club
Mamaroneck, N.Y.

T.J. Auclair, Junior Editor

Each season on the PGA Tour there are four coveted tournaments, affectionately known as golf's Grand Slam that everyone in the world looks forward to. These four are the ones the world's greatest players and hackers alike pretend they're putting to win on the practice green.

This week, Winged Foot Golf Club in Mamaroneck, N.Y., will play host to the second leg of the Grand Slam -- the U.S. Open, which many claim is the most difficult of the four to win.

Several questions will be answered this week.

A few of the most intriguing?

Will the USGA's experiment with rough that gets thicker and longer the further the ball goes off the fairway result in another Massacre at Winged Foot, like in 1974 when Hale Irwin won the U.S. Open at 7 over par? Can Michael Campbell successfully defend? Coming off a win at the Barclays Classic, is Vijay Singh back to the form that allowed him to briefly steal the No. 1 spot from Tiger Woods a couple of years back? Will Phil Mickelson make it three major wins in a row? Can Davis Love III find the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow like he did in the 1997 PGA Championship at Winged Foot? Is Ernie Els healthy and ready to contend like he so often did in the majors? And finally, is it possible that after not having played since the Masters and the death of his father, Earl, that Tiger could somehow, some way win the U.S. Open, which concludes on chills-down-your-spine Father's Day?

We'll have to wait and see how it all plays out.

Until then, Winged Foot PGA Head Professional Tom Nieporte -- the man who has held that distinguished position for an incredible 28 years and is the successor to the renowned Claude Harmon -- joined us for 18 holes of Q&A.

Nieporte shared some priceless stories about his experiences during his PGA Tour days, which included appearances in 13 U.S. Opens, 13 PGA Championships and one Masters. He told us what it was like to play 36 holes with Ben Hogan at the 1958 U.S. Open, explained how enjoyable it was to watch his buddy Billy Casper win the 1959 Open at Winged Foot and wrapped things up by telling us why Lefty will win his third major in as many tries.

No. 1 -- What's it like to be the head professional at one of the most famed courses in the country?

Nieporte: You know, it really is the greatest feeling in the world. Winged Foot is a special place. Every since I became the head professional here, I've looked forward to coming to work every day. It's pretty good.

No. 2 -- How long have you been there?

Nieporte: This is my 28th year. It seems like just yesterday that I was interviewing to replace Claude Harmon. There have only been five head professionals in the history of Winged Foot. I can't remember the first, but the second was Mike Brady. He was a famous golfer from the Walter Hagen/Bobby Jones era [Brady lost to Hagen in a playoff at the 1919 U.S. Open]. Then there was Craig Wood [winner of the 1941 Masters and U.S. Open]. Claude Harmon [1948 Masters champion] followed Wood and was the pro for 33 years. I came in after Claude in 1978.

No. 3 -- I'm sure it's not lost on you that you probably have one of the most enviable positions in golf, right?

Nieporte: I don't know how to explain that. There are great jobs in golf financially, around the country. But I love it here and I'm always excited to come to work. When people come to this area, they either want to play at Baltusrol, Bethpage Black, Shinnecock Hills, or Winged Foot. It stands the test of time. I can't wait to see how they play this year. It'll be tough. In all my years I have never seen grass like this.

No. 4 - How did Winged Foot get started up?

Nieporte: It started out with a group of men from the New York Athletic Club that wanted to build a big course. It looked like they'd be doing it in New Jersey, but then decided to get it going here in Westchester. A.W. Tillinghast was our architect. He had done many courses in the area.

The clubhouse at Winged Foot is a beautiful stone structure. All the stone used for the clubhouse was from Westchester.

No. 5 -- Winged Foot is no stranger to major championship golf. What's it like to have the U.S. Open back?

Nieporte: Everybody was so excited when it was first announced about eight or nine years ago. Once the dates are set you get excited to check them all off. I'd say in the last three or four months things take change. There are all different corporate tents, merchandise tents, media tents, bleachers and television towers going up. It's unbelievable what goes into it.

I remember my first U.S. Open was in 1955 at Olympic Club in San Francisco when Jack Fleck beat Ben Hogan in a playoff. I played in 1958 at Southern Hills in Tulsa with Ben Hogan. Because of the Blue Law, you couldn't play golf on Sunday back then. So I played the last 36 holes with Hogan on Saturday. That was a treat.

Then I played here in the 1959 U.S. Open. My wife and I were close friends will Billy Casper and his wife. We all traveled together. The Caspers stayed with my sister-in-law that week. She was a member at Winged Foot. He won and I missed the cut. It was great to watch it all happen, watch one of your friends win a major. We were new golfers on Tour then.

Casper was one of all time great players. He didn't get the publicity that he should have. When he led on Sundays I swear he always won the tournament. He won 50-some Tour events. Everyone talks about Jack Nicklaus, Arnold Palmer and Gary Player as the Big Three. It should have been the Big Four instead of the Big Three. Billy was right there with those guys.

No. 6 -- The 1974 U.S. Open at Winged Foot was dubbed the, "Massacre at Winged Foot," where there were only eight sub-par rounds for the championship and Hale Irwin won with a 7 over total. What made it so difficult and could you see another massacre in the making this year?

Nieporte: The rough was severe then, but it'll be worse for this U.S. Open. They prepared for it with a new sprinkler system in the rough from the first to the 18th. If you're in there you'll pay the penalty. They will have a first-cut of rough just off the fairway about three yards wide and four inches high. The next cut will be between 5-12 inches, if you can even find your ball. The greens will be fast too. Winged Foot is noted for its undulation and tough greens. We had rain during the PGA in 1997 and the greens were far more receptive. If we get the weather we're hoping for -- the sunny June summer weather -- it'll go tough. We're gearing for 11.5 on the stimp-meter. It should be exciting.

No. 7 -- Could you venture a guess at what the winning total might be?

Nieporte: I think it will be anywhere between 2 under and 2 over. As great as the players are these days though, I guess someone could win at 5 or 6 under. It's a different breed of cat now. I will tell you one thing though -- they had better keep it in the fairway, because they won't be shooting at the stick from that rough.

No. 8 -- From what I understand, Tom Fazio came in to make some changes for the U.S. Open. What changes did he make?

Nieporte: He lengthened it and made some of the greens bigger. If you were to look at pictures from the 1929 U.S. Open, you'll see that over the years the greens were taken away. They cut it back 8-10 feet to the way it used to be.

The No. 3 tee went back a little and so did the fourth green. Wait until you see the 18th. No. 12 was lengthened from 535 yards to 630 yards. We'll see how that works out. The new tee on 16 went from 467 to 487.

No. 9 -- Is the course drastically different from what we saw in 1997 at the PGA Championship?

Nieporte: There have been some changes made since 1997. Nos. 12, 14 and 16 and definitely No. 18. We'll have a bunch of new pin placements where we couldn't put them before because there was no green there.

No. 10 -- The U.S. Open will mark the first tournament Tiger Woods has played since the Masters and the death of his father. He was over at Winged Foot for a practice round a couple of weeks ago. Did you get to see him and did his game appear to be ready for a brutal major?

Nieporte: I did see Tiger. He played by himself. It was fun watching him. I'm sure he's been practicing a lot secretly. He was congenial with everyone. But, Phil Mickelson was here the same day and he won all the hearts of all the members and the staff. He went out of his way to say hello to everyone. They were here on the same day, but they didn't play together.

No. 11 -- In 1997, when Davis Love III won his only major to date, the setting was surreal. It had been raining much of the day and then as he approached the 18th green in the final round, the skies cleared and gave way to a rainbow symbolic of his late father, PGA Professional Davis Love Jr. I was fortunate enough to be behind the green for that moment and got goose-bumps -- I still get them when I think if that moment. Do you remember where you were when that happened and what it was like?

Nieporte: I could have been right next to you behind that 18th green. I knew Davis' dad real well. It was touching to see Davis break through here. All the players were hoping for him to win. Those scores -- three 66s and a 71 -- I don't think they will ever be done again at Winged Foot. Even Tiger has said that was some of the greatest golf ever played. When you watch the scores come in at this Open, they won't be nearly as good as his.

No. 12 -- Love and the rainbow, Payne Stewart and the winning putt at Pinehurst in 1999 and Justin Leonard draining the clinching putt in the 1999 Ryder Cup at Brookline are probably three of my fondest golf memories. What's your fondest golf memory?

Nieporte: I have a few. The first was winning the 1951 Intercollegiate at Ohio State. Then, I won my first Tour event at Firestone in 1959, followed by a win in 1960 in Wilmington and 1967 at the Bob Hope. The Hope was especially memorable for me because of ex-President Dwight Eisenhower's association with the tournament. The winner got the Eisenhower Trophy and President Eisenhower himself presented it. I was called to go under the tent near 18 and we had to wait to see if Doug Sanders tied me. He didn't. It was even more exciting because I was a club pro and won. I was only playing because it was part of the winter Tour. That was a big thrill.

OK. Well, it's now crystal clear that your fondest golf memories are far cooler than mine.

No. 13 -- Obviously, there has got to be a ton of extra work that goes into preparing for a tournament of U.S. Open caliber. Can you tell me how different your duties are compared to a non-tournament year?

Nieporte: It's normal here. Every day is the same. I come to work and I'm excited about it. The days go by fast. I'm having a lot of fun and it's really nice. I admire the membership because if a president or celebrity comes to play they leave them alone. Some places you'd be mobbing the person, asking for autographs. Here they leave people alone.

No. 14 -- What do you think will be the single biggest challenge the players will face at Winged Foot this year?

Nieporte: I suppose the par 3s are always a challenge because you have one shot and it's trouble if you miss the green. But Winged Foot is known for its par 4s. Nos. 9 and 16 are par 5s for the members that have been converted to par 4s. You have 12 par 4s out there. Once you get on the green the challenge starts. I would recommend to all the players that they play to the center of the greens. You had better hope you're in the fairways. Your game is ready to go when you get in that rough. You'll need an adding machine.

You'll see great players shoot over 80. I've played 27 majors -- 13 U.S. Opens, 13 PGA Championships and one Masters -- and I've never seen rough like this. We're not trying to make it hard. We're making them play so that there's a penalty for hitting it in the rough. Oakmont did that. I played there when Jack Nicklaus won at Oakmont in 1962.

It's like Jack did at the Memorial with the bunkers a couple of weeks back. He made it so that there was a penalty for not hitting the ball in the fairway, or on the green. It's the same thing at Winged Foot. The best players will get through it.

If you want to know who's prepared the most so far, it's Phil Mickelson. I had the honor of playing here with Mickelson for two days. It was fun. He wrote down everything. He's a nice guy. I had never met him prior to that and I know I'll be rooting for him now.

No. 15 -- In a major like the U.S. Open, par is your friend. In your opinion, if players are going to pick up some birdies which hole or holes will they have to do it on?

Nieporte: That would be Nos. 5, 6, 7. No. 5 is a par 5 where they can make birdie. No. 6 is a par 4 they can drive, or at most have a drive and a chip. It can be dangerous though. You could easily make a six there. Then No. 7 is a par 3 they can get at with a 7- or 8- iron. All the rest are tough par 3s and 4s. No. 11 will be a birdie hole. I would think that on No. 12 they'll lay-up and be able to get up and down for birdie.

No. 16 -- In contrast, what hole or holes do you think players will get to, scratch their head and wonder how they will salvage par?

Nieporte: Nos. 9 and 16 will play tough. They could be two of the hardest holes on the course. On No. 18, you need to hit two perfect shots. Length doesn't mean anything to these guys though, does it? Where we hit driver and three-wood, they hit driver and 5- or 6- iron. It's amazing to me.

No. 17 -- What's your favorite hole at Winged Foot and why?

Nieporte: No. 10, the signature hole at Winged Foot. It's a par 3 that always makes you happy to look at.

No. 18 -- I think we already know the answer to this, but I'll ask anyway. Could you predict who you think will win this year and why?

Nieporte: I would pick Phil Mickelson because of his short game in high grass. Tiger is the same way. I've seen them save pars from all over the place. Phil has got a feel for getting it up and down out of rough. You can't see the ball and somehow he gets it close to the hole.

That bunker shot he holed at Memorial was unbelievable. That ball was buried.

He's prepared more than anyone. In fact, he was here at 7:30 this morning [the Tuesday before the U.S. Open] with Dave Pelz and Rick Smith. I guess six eyes are better than two. Phil is getting three different opinions out there. It's like a team.