Olazabal comfortable at Torrey Pines  PGATOUR.com Contributor SAN DIEGO -- A smile comes across Jose Maria Olazabal's face when he's asked why his record at the Buick Invitational is so good considering the courses at Torrey Pines don't really fit his game. "Well, I'm not going to say I don't like it," Olazabal said, the smile turning quickly to a laugh. "But I don't know why I like it. Obviously apart from winning here, this place has been pretty good to me, I have to say, but I really cannot figure out how and why."  Jose Maria Olazabal happily admits he doesn't know why he plays so well at Torrey Pines. (Steve Grayson/WireImage)
Olazabal continued his love affair with the Southern California venue in the first round of the Buick Invitational, shooting a 7-under par 65 on the North Course to finish four strokes behind leader Brandt Snedeker. The Spaniard used to begin his season at the FBR Open. Last year, though, he made his debut at the Buick Invitational and went on to tie for second, losing in a playoff to Tiger Woods. He is doing the same thing this season. "For whatever reason, I feel comfortable starting here," Olazabal said. "You play two courses, North and South. It's quite challenging, the South Course." Olazabal took advantage of the conditions and made seven birdies and no bogeys in his first round of 2007. "After having a break of five weeks, the easier the start can be the better," he said. "It would have been obviously tough to start on the South." The pros only play the North Course once, either in the first or second round, then all play the South on the weekend. The South Course has been redesigned by Rees Jones and made more difficult in anticipation of hosting the 2008 U.S. Open. But don't look at Olazabal as one of the favorites for next year's national championship. "I have nightmares about it," Olazabal said. "Don't go that way." The conditions at Torrey Pines this year are not even close to a U.S. Open. The bitter cold and an outside contractor's mistake with fertilizer have made the rough non-existent on the North Course. The North, which is 6,874 yards as compared to 7,469 yards for the South, is always where the scoring takes place. Going low is especially important this year with the widened disparity between the two courses. Olazabal averaged 287.2 yards off the tee last year, which ranked 108th on TOUR and was 149th in fairway accuracy. Hitting it long, and in the fairway, though, are two things player normally needs to do to have success on the South Course. "We all know how long the South Course plays and how tough and well-protected those greens are," Olazabal said. "I'm not a long hitting of the ball. I'm not a short hitter, but I'm not a long hitter. There's some holes over there that I'm going to be hitting really long irons onto the greens, sometimes 5-woods." So how did Olazabal win this event in 2002, lose in that playoff last year and have another top-20 finish? "When I got here I said that," Olazabal said. "I was really surprised, to be honest. "It's not the type of golf course that you would say suits my game, but for whatever reason I've managed to win here and do quite well. We all know how long the South Course plays and how tough and well-protected. That's a huge difference." Of the eight weekend rounds Olazabal has played at the South Course, all but two have been under par. He hopes for more rounds in the red this year as he plays the South the next three days. "I know that there are less and less years in me," Olazabal said. "I have to try to enjoy as much as I can with the game, but at the same time I cannot relax myself." Olazabal is entering his seventh year on TOUR, but at the same time, his 20th as a professional. The former Masters champion's goals might not have changed, but his outlook has. "Basically they're the same," Olazabal said. "The only thing is it's much tougher to achieve them now." | |||||||||||||||||||||||
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