According to Dye’s design manifesto, with its deep pot bunkers and dramatic elevation changes, the course has been sculpted to echo the likes of Royal Dornoch and Gullane in Scotland while the two nines certainly present a differing aesthetic.
Reversed for this week’s event, the front nine sits higher and is more typical of the surrounding area, while the back nine – the ‘Lowlands Nine’ – sits astride Lake Austin with spectacular views over the waterway.
Texan accents have been added, too, via significant use of enormous limestone slabs – quarried on site – around the tees, greens and fairways.
Bronze medallist here 12 months ago, when Austin CC played host to the event for the first time, Cabrera Bello defeated 2015 champion and Ryder Cup team-mate Rory McIlroy in the third/fourth play-off to claim his best finish in a WGC tournament so the Spaniard is well-placed to offer an insight into the quirks and questions asked by the Texan layout.
Overview
“It’s a course that I like and a story of two halves really,” says Cabrera Bello, who went undefeated through five matches in 2016 before being knocked out in the semi-final by eventual runner-up Louis Oosthuizen. “The first nine is much tighter off the tee, really in the middle of the trees, and then the back nine is much more open and wider fairways.
One year ago, @RCabreraBello...#DellMatchPlay pic.twitter.com/UwUg7zPHri
— The European Tour (@EuropeanTour) March 21, 2017
The Links Effect
“You can see the Scottish influence in some aspects,” he says. “There are lots of small pot bunkers around the greens and some are pretty big, too. The contours around the green are quite linksy with lots of run-off areas so it does resemble those sort of courses in that sense.”
The Greens
“Most of the greens here are quite undulating with lots of ridges and small target areas but last year the primary challenge was the speed of the putting surfaces. They were very fast and very firm which makes for a lightning combination! Like I say, they are not as quick – yet! – but they might be by the end of the week.”
A Wedger’s Paradise
Austin Country Club favours a strong wedge player. Last year, 37 per cent of all approach shots came from inside 125 yards compared to somewhere nearer 25 per cent for a regular Tour event.
“That is another reason why I think the course suits my game,” says the 32 year old, who ranks eighth on Tour this year for approaches between 75-100 yards. “There are a lot of short par fours where you can get yourself into a lob wedge into the green and most of the par fives are reachable, too.
“Accuracy off the tee is always important but perhaps here you can maybe get away with not hitting every fairway but accuracy into the green is more important otherwise you’ll struggle to leave yourself an accessible birdie putt.”
How it played last year
- The toughest two holes last year were the 476-yard par four second (4.18 average) and the 483-yard par four eighth (4.17)
- Outside of the par fives, the best birdie opportunities were found at the potentially driveable fifth, 13th and 18th holes
- The par four ninth proved a decisive hole last year. Requiring an accurate drive and a long approach over a hazard to the green, 42 per cent of match winners won this hole en route to victory
- Jason Day’s main advantage in 2016 came from generating birdie or better opportunities, ranking first in the field for birdie or better rate 12 months ago
