talking points Ben Crenshaw, Freedom Fighter

Here's Ben Crenshaw on his favorite British Open venue -- the Old Course at St. Andrews -- as told to Kevin Robbins of the Statesman:

“It’s the most democratic golf course in the world. If you’re a beginner, you can play it. And if you’re an expert professional, it holds your attention, maybe more than any golf course in the world. And it’s because of the undulations, and it is definitely a golf course that you are not dictated to, as to how to play it.

“And I think that’s what’s fascinating about it. So many tournament golf courses today, there’s only one way to play [them] for the major championships, I’d say, apart from Augusta. You have prescribed fairway height and length and width. It essentially becomes penal. The risk and reward is not quite there in major tournament golf. In other words, you’re playing down narrow lanes. You just don’t have choices.

“I just generally like that freedom to choose.”