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May 11, 2007
And I Wasn't Even Playing
Last year over the course of the four rounds of the Player's Championship 57 balls were hit in the water at No. 17. In yesterday's first round, thanks in large part to Andrea, 50 balls went swimming
PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. (AP) — Camilo Villegas dropped his club, then dropped his head. His ball dropped a few seconds later - right into the murky lagoon surrounding the famed 17th hole at the TPC Sawgrass.Villegas hit one of 50 balls into the water surrounding the island green Thursday, helping break the single-round tournament record of 45 set in 2000.
...About a third of the field found water at No. 17 during the first round of The Players Championship and made the short, somewhat embarrassing walk to the drop area for a third shot.
Davis Love III, Ben Curtis, Kent Jones and Trevor Immelman couldn't even hit the green from there, needing a third tee shot to land on the 90-by-85 foot putting surface. They finished with quadruple-bogey 7s.
The 128-yard hole played tougher than any other Thursday, mostly because wind gusts reached 39 mph and swirled in different directions.
There were 12 birdies, 70 pars, 26 bogeys, 23 double bogeys and 12 ``others'' at No. 17. The daunting hole left many golfers shaking their head, questioning their club selection and feeling either frustration or relief as they walked to the 18th tee.
Hee-hee. I agree with Tiger that it's gimmicky, but that doesn't make it any less fun for us hackers to watch the pros splash it.
Posted by Mr. Bingley at May 11, 2007 07:10 AM