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NORTON - On Friday and Saturday, it seemed like the TPC Boston was too easy for the PGA Tour, especially for a host of the FedEx Cup playoffs.

First, Canadian Mike Weir blistered the 6-year-old layout on Friday, breaking the course record with a 10-under par 61.

Then, South African Tim Clark flirted with a magical 59 on Saturday before bogeying his final two holes on his way to a 62.

Over the first two days, the average score was a little more than 67, down two strokes from last year. To make the cut, players had to shoot a 3-under par 139.

That all changed, especially on Monday. First, the wind kicked up on Sunday. And for Monday's final round, the greens played extremely firm and fast, leading to much higher scores.

"I think the golf course was playing a lot tougher today than I've ever seen it play," said Vijay Singh, the only player to truly master the course on Monday as his 8-under par 63 gave him a five-stroke victory over Weir in the sixth annual Deutsche Bank Championship and a commanding lead in the FedEx Cup. "I don't think this golf course could play any tougher. The greens were really, really firm. The pin placements were not easy at all. I think this golf course today played the hardest I've ever played this golf course."

That was the universal opinion of all players after only Singh and nine others of the 70 players remaining in Monday's field broke 70.

Early in the week, the par-71 layout, designed by Arnold Palmer with a 2007 update by Gil Hanse and PGA Tour veteran Brad Faxon, had drawn praise from nearly every pro.

Clark, the leader after two rounds, said the conditions of the greens were absolutely perfect the first two days, and there was no wind - ideal conditions for PGA Tour pros to score low.

"These greens are running good, so the guys (were) making a lot of putts," Clark said. "But this course certainly isn't easy. It's got a lot of long holes out there."

Things changed on Sunday when winds picked up, driving the average score back into the usual range of about 69. Still, there were a pair of 63s on Sunday, shot by Camilo Villegas and Ben Crane.

But on Monday, the greens became extremely firm and fast.

"It was a joke," said Villegas, who followed his 8-under 63 on Sunday with a 2-over 73 on Monday - but still finished tied for third. "It's amazing how the golf course changed from Friday to Monday."

Weir doesn't blame the TPC Boston but the PGA Tour which decides the setup of the course - things such as pin placement and firmness of the green. "I've noticed that almost every week on tour now, that the golf courses change so much from Thursday to Sunday that it's almost like you're not playing the same place," he said. "I'm not sure of the reasoning for that. I know you want the golf course a little tougher, but..."

"It's borderline, what do I want to say, mini-golf, almost, really," he continued. "I'm not sure what they're trying to do with that. I don't agree with that myself."

The difficulty of the course only underscored Singh's accomplishment.

Of the 10 other players in the final pairing, he was the only one to break par - and he did that by eight strokes. His round included a chip-in eagle on the par-5 second hole and eight other birdies.

His only bogey, in fact, came on the 15th hole when his approach shot came close to the pin, yet spun back so much on the firm green that it rolled into the rough where Singh was unable to get it up and down.

Despite his overwhelming victory, Singh also said greens have been overly tough in tournaments' final rounds - and he believes the PGA Tour should do something about it.

"The first two days you play it, the greens are very receptive, and the last two days it just gets almost impossible," he said. "I think the tour should actually look into that and give it a happy medium instead of just soft greens the first two days and really, really, almost impossible (greens) for some of the guys out there if you're not playing well."

MIKE KIRBY can be reached at 508-236-0344 or at mkirby@thesunchronicle.com.