[winflop]

Win, do you have a thought about Stanford's preference for a regional assignment?

Traditions Club (College Station, TX)
PGA National Resort - Champion Course (Palm Beach Gardens, FL)
The Course at Yale (New Haven, CT)
The Reserve at Spanos Park (Stockton, CA)
Ol' Colony Golf Complex (Tuscaloosa, AL)
OSU Golf Club (Columbus, OH)

I have no real info on any of these courses, but wonder if staying in California and the same time zone is worth any kind of advantage.

A lot of success in college golf is dependent on how you putt. Staying in California likely means familiarity with the grass on the greens. The Reserve at Spanos Park hosted a regional as recently as 2018 and Stanford did play there so Coach Ray would have some memory and experience to share with the current team.

To answer the first question, I've never played any of these courses. I think it's more likely that some of the players have played Spanos but not sure.

While I'd normally agree that staying in CA means familiarity with the greens, that may not be true and it may not be as big of an issue as you might think. The reason it may not be true is that Stanford's greens are bent whereas most of the courses in CA are poa annua (Stanford used to be poa until they put in the "Tiger greens" in the early 90s).

It's also not that big of an issue because their training complex has both bent and poa greens so they can (and do) practice putting (and pitching/chipping to) either one. Same goes for hitting full swing area I think they have rye (our grass), bermuda, and at least one other. Siebel is a world-class facility.

Finally, keep in mind that all of the players have extensive junior experience and likely have played on pretty much every type of grass.

[winflop]

Win, do you have a thought about Stanford's preference for a regional assignment?

Traditions Club (College Station, TX)
PGA National Resort - Champion Course (Palm Beach Gardens, FL)
The Course at Yale (New Haven, CT)
The Reserve at Spanos Park (Stockton, CA)
Ol' Colony Golf Complex (Tuscaloosa, AL)
OSU Golf Club (Columbus, OH)

I have no real info on any of these courses, but wonder if staying in California and the same time zone is worth any kind of advantage.

A lot of success in college golf is dependent on how you putt. Staying in California likely means familiarity with the grass on the greens. The Reserve at Spanos Park hosted a regional as recently as 2018 and Stanford did play there so Coach Ray would have some memory and experience to share with the current team.

To answer the first question, I've never played any of these courses. I think it's more likely that some of the players have played Spanos but not sure.

While I'd normally agree that staying in CA means familiarity with the greens, that may not be true and it may not be as big of an issue as you might think. The reason it may not be true is that Stanford's greens are bent whereas most of the courses in CA are poa annua (Stanford used to be poa until they put in the "Tiger greens" in the early 90s).

It's also not that big of an issue because their training complex has both bent and poa greens so they can (and do) practice putting (and pitching/chipping to) either one. Same goes for hitting full swing area I think they have rye (our grass), bermuda, and at least one other. Siebel is a world-class facility.

Finally, keep in mind that all of the players have extensive junior experience and likely have played on pretty much every type of grass.