Super man

PONTE VEDRA BEACH, FL

Spahn has a different outlook than most who come to the Tournament Players Club at Sawgrass.

Caring for one of the worldıs most difficult golf courses is a never-ending chore where gripes and moans are more common than high praise.

"The rough is too high." "The greens are too fast." "The sand is too soft." Fred Klauk, superintendent of golf at the TPC at Sawgrass, has heard them all. For almost 20 years Klauk has overseen the care and condition of one of the most difficult and most famous courses on the planet. And each spring, as 144 of the best professional golfers in the world gather at the Sawgrass Stadium Course to test their skills, Klauk often finds himself at the receiving end of biting critiques and pointed questions about the cut of the grass, a tree limb that hangs out over the fairway or greens as soft as a pingpong table.

Klauk, 50, has learned to take the barbs and praise in stride. Instead, he prefers to concentrate on preparing his staff of 68 and his golf course to accommodate not only the sport's superstars but also the tens of thousands of fans who will trample over nearly every inch of the 440-acre TPC at PGA TOUR Commissioner Tim Finchem (left) walks the Stadium Course with Klauk. Sawgrass facility. Klauk says he is more concerned with THE PLAYERS Championship achieving major status in the golf world. And, according to the Florida native and University of Florida alum, the only way for that to happen is by having a course that is difficult but fair to play. "As to whether the course is fair or unfair," Klauk says, "I think the players who hit it in the fairway aren't going to complain too much. We want players to be challenged by the course and have respect for it. I believe that is what we have done."

The course conditions during THE PLAYERS and all other official PGA Tour events are determined by specifications determined by the Rules and Regulations Committee for the PGA Tour. However, Klauk admits the layout of the Stadium Course has become more challenging since 1994. Several tees have been moved back 20 or 30 yards to return some of the length the course's original designer Pete Dye had in mind when he created the 18-hole, par-72 layout in 1980. Klauk believes the added length is necessary to counter the Tour's growing cadre of heavy hitters, players strong enough to shoot for par-5 greens with medium irons on their second shots. 15-year superintendent Fred Klauk keeps the greens at Sawgrass meticulous.

In addition to stronger and more athletic players, Klauk says the reason for longer drives off the tees in tournament play is the manicured condition of the courses. In years past fairway grass was cut to a length of three-quarters to half-an-inch in height. Today the standard fairway height is three-eighths of an inch. The result of the close-cropped grass? Balls that roll farther. "We are cutting fairways at tee height now, cutting tee height at greens height, and greens height as high as the felt on a billiards table. That is one of the biggest advantages for the player right now," he says.

Klauk has been superintendent at the TPC at Sawgrass since 1985. Sawgrass is the first of 22 Tournament Players Clubs (TPC) built around the world. These high-profile, superbly maintained golf courses are wholly owned by the PGA Tour. Prior to beginning his tenure at Sawgrass, Klauk, who earned his degree in agricultural horticulture, was superintendent at the TPC at Eagle Trace from 1983 to 1985. The father of three insists he never takes it personally when a player shoots a good round or a bad round at a course he is responsible for. "Fred Couples shot a 63 at Eagle Trace when I was there. Then he shot the same score here," he says. "If a course is a little bit soft and the players can aim at the flag sticks and hit it close, they should be rewarded with low scores."

According to Klauk, the keys to scoring well at Sawgrass are accuracy and consistency. Players who don't possess an all-around game will find it tough going. "If you look at all of the past champions, they have all been very successful tournament players. This is a very difficult course. You have to hit the ball straight, especially with the condition of the rough. And accuracy with your iron game is paramount with the greens being so small."