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Southern Hills proves up to task as major host

Host to a fifth PGA Championship and eighth major overall, the Tulsa, Oklahoma, venue has the respect on The First Call readers

PGA Championship 2022
Southern Hills Country Club's clock tower.

Question of the Week [May 16-22]: Southern Hills Country Club is hosting its fifth PGA Championship this week. How would you rate the Perry Maxwell-designed Tulsa, Oklahoma, club compared with other championships sites? 

Wonderful venue. That being said, I think a better test of the best players in the world would be on a course never played before. There are plenty of incredible courses in America that have never hosted a PGA Tour event, let alone the PGA of America. This would test the players’ ability to adapt to a course that he may have never seen before or played. No repetitious knee jerk reactions of knowing exactly how to play each hole by past years of experience. Test the players' capabilities fully.

Bruce Kalapach 
Fort Worth, Texas
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After viewing Garrett Morrison's The Fried Egg review of Southern Hills, I have high expectations for excellent golf. While I’ll probably never get the chance to play there, I think I would be able to navigate around the course for the easy bogey while [course architect] Gil Hanse has also enabled hard birdies with risk/reward. Love the bunker style, the reintroduction of the small wandering creeks, and the short grass around the greens.

Hoping to do a Perry Maxwell tour of public courses in the Midwest in the next year or two, should be a blast.

Mark Chatfield
Houston, Texas
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I would rate Southern Hills on an equal level with most of the traditional heartland courses that host majors. Not quite with Oakmont, Shinnecock or Wing Foot. Equal to Oakland Hills, Medinah and Merion. Better than Cherry Hills, Bellerive, Congressional, Olympic, Hazeltine, Inverness and Oak Hill. 

Rick Wright
Alamo, Texas
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This is a great classic golf course that will compare very well to other iconic venues. The most recent golf course renovation only enhances the stature of this facility. Players and fans will love what they see this week in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Expect a great championship on a fantastic golf course.

Reid Farrill
Toronto, Canada
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