St. Louis, Missouri …

England’s Ross Fisher got his first look at this week’s 100th PGA Championship host course and he clearly liked what he saw.

Fisher accompanied fellow Irish Open winner Russell Knox of Scotland in playing the front nine of the Bellerive course located to the north-west of St. Louis, Missouri.

The duo, and like all other players in the field this week, were greeted by 100 degree Fahrenheit temperatures and with large electrical fans in operation behind the greens directed at spectators but hardly making an impression in the sauna-like conditions.

The 37-year old Ascot-based Fisher is no stranger to the PGA Championship with this week marking his eighth appearance in the event since making his debut a decade ago at Oakland Hills.

“It is typical PGA course, pretty generous off the tees with the greens pretty large and sectioned off with tiers but unusually slow for a major I would say but they have had problems with the hot weather, so they are very soft and pretty slow.

England’s Ross Fisher delights fans signing autographs after playing nine hole of the Bellerive course (Photo @tourmiss)

“But as course goes it is very, very fair and gives you options of the tee where you can play aggressive or lay it back and hit the fairways.

“So my first impression really like it and it fits my eye very well.

“I will try to see the other nine tomorrow as it looks quite penal.

“As for the greens, it depends whether you’re into the grain or down grain but I really like the grass here as well. The ball sits up so if you miss the greens and the fairways it sits up quite nicely.

“Carnoustie favoured the long hitters as they had the advantage because they could smack it and clear the bunkers but this week is totally different ball game as you have fairways aren’t 20-yards wide with massive pot bunkers. The fairways here are 40-50 yards wide so if you miss the fairway you know you’re driving it poorly this week.

“Most golf courses like Carrnoustie the longer hitters are going to have an advantage over a shorter hitter but here more of the high ball hitters will have definitely more of a chance, and if it did get firm hitting it high will help because balls gong a long way.”

Ross Fisher’s contestants badge for the 100th PGA Championship (Photo @tourmiss)

Fisher has contested 30 Majors since stepping onto the first tee at the game’s highest level in the 2007 Open at Carnoustie while this week will mark the fourth year he will have played all four majors in a single season.

The father of two’s best finish was T5th in the 2009 U.S. Open at Bethpage Park while he recorded his best PGA showing that same year in finishing T19th at Hazeltine.

“I have been playing enough Majors now to be very comfortable at this level of the game and it’s where you want to be and where you want to test your game,” he said.

“Last week was great in secuing a top-20 in the Bridgestone with my game in really, really good shape and five-under for the four days was the worst it could have been, and I do feel I played better than my score suggested.”

Fisher’s a five-time European Tour winner but last October stamped his name into the St. Andrews Old Course record books shooting a sizzling new course record 61 in finishing runner-up in the Dunhill Links Championship.

His best result this year was also a second in his very first event of 2018 – the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship.

FOOTNOTE …

This week, of course, marks the first return to Bellerive since the 9/11 terrorist attacks and with the 2001 WGC – AMEX Championship cancelled soon after the extent of the terror was known.

Fisher was 18 at the time and working in the caddy office at the Wentworth Golf Club in Surrey.

“I remember that day like it was yesterday as I was in the caddy office and then walked into the Pro Shop and the TV was on and I thought ‘What’s this?’ as a plane had crashed into one of the Trade Centre towers,” he said.

“There was about four of five of the pros in the shop at that time also glued to the TV and then all of a sudden this plane came into shot and went through the other tower, and this was all live on TV.

“So it was a surreal moment and it I will always remember what I was doing that particular day.”