After shooting a one-under 70 at Torrey Pines Thursday, Ernie Els took one final shot -- at the greens.

“They were very bumpy,” Els said. “You really couldn’t have a go at anything, really. If you had 25 to 35 feet away, you almost had to three-putt and not do anything stupid.”

Cue the collective shudder from the USGA. Players often carp about the scruffy nature of Poa annua greens, which tend to become more unpredictable as they dry out, but Els’ tone was particularly disapproving. “That’s going to be defense of the golf course this week … the bumpiness of the greens and the flag position,” he said.

So much for those pesky 7,643 yards.

Els’ partner Thursday, Geoff Ogilvy, was less critical. Yes, putts bounced around, he said, but the greens rolled true. “If you’re hitting good putts, they’re going in,” he said.