The Dutch will host its first European Tour event this week as the KLM Open brings some of the biggest names in golf to the European Tour Destination in the Netherlands for the 97th edition of the tournament. This is what the pros had to say about the Colin Montgomerie-designed course:
Joost Luiten, 2013 winner of the KLM Open: “They didn’t have to do a lot to prepare for this tournament, because this is just how the course is all year. It’s a pretty open golf course, but you’ve got to be straight off the tee, because there are a lot of mounds around that will make it very tough.
“There’s quite a bit of water on the golf course as well, so you’ve got to be straight. At the end of the day we’re in Holland, so you need some water! I think it will be a good test, especially if the wind is up.”
Mikko Korhonen: “I think it’s fantastic. There are some tricky greens, but some good new holes. I think driving will be important here.
“I’ve played two previous courses in the KLM Open and they’ve both been great, but this is new and I think that’s the thing. The other two were older and had a different spirit.”
Richard Bland: “There are a lot of options, which makes you think. You can attack if off the tee or play fairly smart if you want to.
“It’s a real second shot course as well, because the greens are quite undulating. There are sections of the green that can be tricky if they put the flag there and you don’t put the right shot into the green. It probably needs some wind to make it a really tough test.
Ross Fisher, winner of the 2007 KLM Open: “It’s going to be very different to the two previous KLM Opens we’ve played, but I like the feel of it.
“If it gets windy around here it could cause some problems. There aren’t too many trees around so it could be quite exposed. It’s not the longest course, so it might get quite fiddly and you’ll have to be quite strategic.”
Maarten Lafeber, 2003 winner of the KLM Open:“It’s different to other courses in this country in that it’s more open, it’s a new style of design. It’s very well manicured and in good condition.
“It’s a good design and it does feel linksy here and there, but we’re going to get good weather so it’s going to be a bit firmer I guess, which will make it interesting.
Thomas Detry: “It’s great, I think it seems like an American style golf course. There’s some very good bunkering and the greens are amazing, with a lot of run outs here and there. I love the course and it fits my eye.”
Scott Hend: “The greens look really large compared to last week! The course looks like it could be a little bit windy, maybe a bit of a Scottish links look to the course, so it looks pretty good.”
