“I hate it,” said Brooks Koepka’s coach Pete Cowen.

“I haven’t heard a player say a good thing about it. They’ll just deal with it.”

Yje 17th hole replaces the par-3 15th and is 136 yards. With its elevated green and deep surrounding bunkers it’s the shortest hole on the course. It’s a potentially unfair challenge, according to Cowen. 

“It could ruin somebody’s career if the wind goes in the wrong direction all of a sudden or there is bad luck rolling down from the wrong place,”

Why would you make a 120-130 yard par-3 impossible? It’s called an infinity green and that could be it. They could be playing infinitely backwards and forwards across the green.”

From the players Matt Fitzpatrick called the hole “interesting.” And Jordan Spieth said it could produce some “carnage.” So, yeah, better buckle up for this one.

brooks Koepka said “Yeah, that sounds like Pete,” he joked. “I think it’s a good hole. That’s how par-threes should be. I’m not a huge fan of the 250-yard par-threes. All the great par-threes are nine-iron and less and difficult greens.”

The 17th hole replaced the par-3 15th that was in play when McIlroy captured the claret jug the last time Hoylake hosted in 2014.