The new 'Little Eye' par 3 17th hole has been a divisive one this week but one pro managed to ace it during Friday's second round.
Travis Smyth knocked down an iron shot into the undulating green, with his ball landing just short of the pin and then hopping straight into the hole. The Australian arrived to the tee at 10-over-par but left it at eight-over after making the first hole-in-one of the 2023 Open Championship.
Watch Travis Smyth's hole-in-one at The Open:
🚨🚨HOLE-IN-ONE on the 17th at Royal Liverpool from Travis Smyth!! 👏👏👏pic.twitter.com/ePUtxJ3ObDJuly 21, 2023
Smyth is level par for the hole through two rounds, after making a double bogey five in Thursday's opening round. The Australian mainly plays on the Asian Tour following three appearances in LIV Golf last year.
He was making his Major championship debut this week and will likely be missing the cut by some margin.
And while he found the hole easy on Friday, 'Little Eye' has been criticised for being too extreme if you miss the putting surface.
“Unfortunately I think this Open Championship could be remembered for a calamity that happened,” experienced bagman and Motocaddy brand ambassador, Billy Foster, told Golf Monthly.
“There was nothing wrong with the little par three they had before and they've created a monstrosity in my opinion.
“The green is very small. If you land it a foot short it rolls back into a coffin that's underground, so deep. This is challenging the best golfers in the world that will be making 6s, 7s and 8s.”
"It's probably not my cup of tea," Richard Bland said. "I'm sure there's a few guys that have said that. But it's there and we've got to play it. You've got to man up and do it. But yeah, for me, I think it's just a little out of the context of the golf course.
"I played it like 30 years ago, and I didn't remember it and fell in love with it as soon as I came back and started playing. What a great challenge we've got. Then 17 is a bit of a sore thumb, I think, really. I think it just needs a bit of -- the green just needs to be bigger, I think. But it is what it is."
