A round-up of news from Whistling Straits

Mosquitoes bug early starters

ONE of the most important items which a caddie must pack into a player’s bag here is a bug spray to thwart the armies of mosquitoes, especially for those with early-morning tee times before the sun breaks through. They’re out there in a big way, quite shocking, especially the few holes down by the lake,” agreed Hunter Mahan (above). “They were swarming . . . we can’t do anything about it.

Mahan’s solution to the problem? “We can’t do anything except put on a lot of ‘OFF!’,” referring to a well known brand of mosquito spray.

Quiros to cut a dash

ALVARO Quiros will be something of a clothes horse as he goes in quest of the Wanamaker Trophy. The Spaniard’s daily outfits have been selected in an on-line poll conducted by Callaway of the company’s 2011 Spring line – so it is that the biggest hitter on tour will start his quest tomorrow wearing a Chev Back Kick (which finished fourth of the eight outfits available to pollsters), followed by a Chev Engineered outfit (third) on Friday and a Chev Elite (second) on Saturday, assuming he makes the cut. The winning selection – a Chev Pipe design which received 25 per cent of the vote – will be kept until Sunday’s final round.

Kohler wants the wind to whistle

HERB Kohler, the man who still insists he is “a plumber” first and foremost, is the visionary behind the Whistling Straits links and he has one wish for this week’s championship – that the wind should blow!

“I’d like to see the wind, not extreme but just to see it keep players off-balance and have to adjust and readjust (standing over shots).”