World Golf Hall of Fame member Hollis Stacy knows what it takes to win a major title at Hazeltine National Golf Club and her advice to players competing in this week's KPMG Women's PGA Championship is twofold: stay patient and be kind to yourself.
An 18-time champion on the LPGA Tour, Stacy clinched the first of her three U.S. Women's Open crowns in 1977 at Hazeltine and will never forget the intense pressure and high levels of stress that she endured before she eventually triumphed by two shots over Nancy Lopez.
"I had never won a major before and the pressure was just really, really horrible," Stacy told LPGA.com. "I didn't sleep much the entire week, which is true to form when you are playing in any major and you're in contention. I was just hanging in there. I remember Nancy was on my heels, and Jan Stephenson was on my heels. I remember how tough it was. I just kept hanging in there and fortunately I played well on the last day."
As to her strongest memories of that victory at Hazeltine, Stacy smiled: "I remember how long it played, I guess maybe because we were handicapped with wood (clubs) and balata (golf balls). My main memory is that it was just a long, lush course and rolling, not real hilly but rolling. It was really a tough golf course. I won it at four over par. I didn't really lead but I was always the one in the top four the whole week. And I will never forget the pressure!"
The mounting pressure which Stacy experienced in contending for her first major victory frames the advice that she gives to the players of today should they find themselves in a similar position.
"Being kind to yourself is so important," she said. "I always tell the players that you just have to be really forgiving. Everybody makes mistakes on the golf course and you just have to go forward and do the best that you can. I also remember I was really patient that week with myself. So be kind to yourself, and stay patient."
HIGH REGARD
Stacy, who won the U.S. Women's Open in 1977, 1978 and 1984, has long held Hazeltine National in high regard as a major championship venue.
"It's certainly one of the top courses around," she said of a course which hosted the U.S. Women's Open in 1966 and 1977. "A men's Ryder Cup has been held here (in 2016) and two men's U.S. Opens (1970 and 1991) - Payne Stewart won here and Tony Jacklin won here. It's one of the top golf courses in the United States. I think it rivals a Winged Foot."
Asked what type of player was best suited to tackle the challenge presented by the 6,807-yard Hazeltine National layout, Stacy replied with a broad grin: "The player who drives it 260-270 yards, right down the middle! On this course, it's all about being smart and hitting your second shot well. Always when you are winning a major you are driving it well, having control of your second shot and being in the optimal spot. The greens here can get really fast and since it is the Midwest the wind can really come into play. It will be a great venue this week for a major championship for the women."
Since Stacy won the 1977 U.S. Women's Open at Hazeltine, the course has undergone a series of renovations and several dogleg holes have been straightened. The most noticeable changes have come on the closing stretch where the par-three 16th has been abandoned with a new par-four hole laid out along Hazeltine Lake and the par-four 17th has been converted into a par-three while retaining the original green site.
"When I played here in 1977, the 16th hole was a bad par-three and 17 was a worse par-four," Stacy grinned. "I remember on 16 I hit a two-iron in there. No one is carrying a two-iron any more! That hole was too hard! And on 17, I remember there was very little landing area and you had to lay up with like a three-iron and then hit like a nine-iron up there.
"But they have switched it around since then. On 16, they added more dirt out to the lake and they've made it a beautiful par four and 17 they've turned into a par-three. Rees Jones did the re-design work here, and he’s done a great job. They’ve made it into two great holes."
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