When it comes to golf’s iconic par 3 holes, few are as widely known and talked about as the 17th hole at TPC Sawgrass.
Every year, The Players tests and terrifies the world’s best players. The green is completely surrounded by water except for one small path, and the wind swirls around the grandstand.
The hole has witnessed many memorable moments, including Tiger Woods’ “better than most” putt and some 14 hole-in-ones, but Cameron Young’s birdie putt in Sunday’s one-stroke victory over playing partner Matt Fitzpatrick proved crucial there.
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See all the televised hole-in-ones on the iconic 17th hole, one of the most famous holes on the PGA Tour.
It’s a bucket list shot and course for amateurs, but what’s it like to play TPC Sawgrass as a 28 handicapper?I was lucky enough to get my hands on it less than 14 hours after Young won the winning par and $4.5 million in prize money.
Joined by Dame Laura Davies and Sky Sports colleagues Tom Clarke and Jordan Roberts, we were thrilled to be playing in such a special venue. Lots of tough tee shots, water on most holes, rough that is said to be the “thicker one ever”, some tricky bunkers, super fast greens, what can you expect?!
For the sake of transparency, the 17th hole was the only hole where the players were tackled from the same tee they used on Sunday. TPC Sawgrass is challenging enough even if you don’t hit it from the back tip.
Sky Sports team and caddy Ben Edwards advance on the 17th hole
The shambles format, in which each hole is played from the point where the team’s best tee shot ended, was also very beneficial for those without length off the tee.
It may sound self-deprecating, but with my ugly swing (Sky Sports’ Rich Beam called it a “swipe”) and lack of distance, I wouldn’t have been able to compete at the full yardage of this course.
The white tees at least gave us a chance to hit the fairway with our tee shots, but that was still easier said than done, plus we got to see just how far these PGA Tour stars could hit.
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Highlights from the final day of The Players. Cameron Young shot a 4-under 68 to win at TPC Sawgrass.
Danger everywhere!
“Anywhere but 18” was the hole we chose as the opening hole for the shotgun format. With a vast expanse of water on the left side of the fairway and tree trouble on the right, the tension was even higher when the last part tour became the first shot of the day.
Panic turned to admiration after he unexpectedly put his bat on the ball and made a good drive into the fairway, albeit 200 yards shorter than Young’s strong tee shot the previous day. Naturally, I didn’t use my tee shot, but I was still saved by a) getting it up in the air and b) not letting the ball go into the water.
My first encounter with nasty rough came after a few shots, when I hit a thick iron to the right and the ball was buried in a downhill lie and I couldn’t measure it more than 30 yards.
Thanks to a slightly gentler lie, I was able to make clean contact and hit the green on my next effort. A two-putt double bogey was a better return than what I managed to do over the weekend.
Things got even better for the next par 4, where a big (by my low standards) drive cleared the danger and I played the hole off the tee after falling to the left side of the fairway.
A 5-iron from a yard where most pros would hit a wedge looked good in the air, but it fell short and the ball caught on the fringe collar and went into the rough. I was thinking about duffing or thinning the chips, but a good enough pitch ended about 15 feet from the flag, and with two more putts I made a legitimate bogey with my ball. scene!
My short game quickly got away from me on the par-5 second, and I missed the landing spot on the green on my third shot, watching the ball roll backwards as my first chip rolled to my feet and my next shot rolled across the putting surface.
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See the course from a photographer’s perspective as you follow the players at TPC Sawgrass.
He briefly regained his form with a two-putt par from the fringe on the short 3rd, but the unforgettable 4th was followed by a lost ball in the rough and a ball that fell from the thick grass into the water.
His aggressive downhill par putt on No. 5 missed the green, and he three-putted from No. 6 for bogey, which was also a mistake, and on No. 7, a fuzzy wedge from the rough just hit the bunker.
He got a solid par on the 8th hole, although it wasn’t his tee shot, and then on the par-5 9th hole, he attempted a hybrid from the fairway, but was topped 10 yards from the water, and confusion ensued as he tried to hit a stuck ball from the rough and failed to swing.
The wind picked up after the turn, causing the ball to go into the water or become buried in the rough more often, including in the same spot as the hazard found by Ludwig Øberg on the 11th the previous day.
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Ludwig Oberg goes into water on back-to-back holes at The Players and gives up the lead
The highlight of the day was the par-4 12th, where he hit a short iron from the right rough to within 10 feet to shave the cup edge, but on the par-3 13th, he tried for a double-break birdie from the front edge end on the downhill slope, but suffered a bogey, but missed the putt.
Attention will be on the 17th
A shot over a small gap in the trees and into a greenside bunker — from the same spot Scottie Scheffler played over the weekend — was another standout moment on the back nine, but thoughts were already turning to No. 17 as stormy skies darkened.
The first time I realized the danger ahead was as I was walking on the par-5 16th. There, distracted by Justin Rose observing a group on the next tee, and the anxiety of how close the storm was, I cut into the sand and then stumbled toward the grandstand.
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Wayne “Radar” Riley looks at TPC Sawgrass’ iconic 16th and 17th holes at The Players
Recovering without finishing the hole beyond the format’s double-bogey limit wasn’t the ideal confidence booster when considering the short walk to the 17th tee box and how many balls he would have lost.
There may not have been thousands of spectators filling the stands as I stepped onto the tee to aim for the pin in front right, but self-doubt crept in. Which club has a realistic chance of reaching the green? How can I leave it there? Is Bob Tway’s record of 12 strokes on this hole under threat?!
As I watched all three of my partners take good swings, two of them stayed on dry ground and one ran off from behind, I stepped up with only one goal in mind. It’s about establishing a clean connection.
I didn’t have a 6-iron and wasn’t confident hitting a 7-iron that distance, so I decided to use a 5-iron. I watched in disbelief as the ball at first appeared to race away from behind me, then made a beeline for the center of the green.
Water and wind create additional challenges on the 17th hole
Incredibly, the ball held up just inches from the sleeper on the second cut and was dry on the first try. The following chip was downhill, threatening the hole before it started to look like it lacked pace, and passed the pin.
My putt hole footage wasn’t all that great throughout, but when it mattered the most, I finally made the putt and the 5-footer hit the middle of the cup with the par of my life. It was a special way to end a great day.
TPC Sawgrass is often discussed as a course that tests all aspects of a golfer’s game. It’s definitely a cruelly great test for amateurs. As I watch and work on future editions of The Players, the story of that unforgettable Monday will be shared for years to come.
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