SPORTS

Meet the dreaded 100-yard walk at The Players Championship's TPC Sawgrass

Steve DiMeglio
USA TODAY Sports

PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. — A few walks in golf are cherished.

Along Stillwater Cove and Carmel Bay at Pebble Beach. Among the azaleas and pine trees at Amen Corner at Augusta National Golf Club. Across the Swilken Bridge onto the ancient 18th fairway on the Old Course in St. Andrews, Scotland, the home of golf.

Each step stimulates the senses, soothes the soul and takes residence in the memory banks of those who love the game.

Then there are the walks no one looks forward to.

To the golf bag to get another ball after hitting a tee shot out of bounds. Staggering to the drop zone. The march back to retrieve a forgotten club.

And the 100-yard stroll from the 16th green to the 17th tee on the Stadium Course at TPC Sawgrass during The Players Championship, the PGA Tour’s showcase event.

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Akin to a dark alley, even the game’s best players are skittish as they navigate a narrow strip of grass bordered by boisterous fans on the left and menacing water on the right. Alone with their thoughts, they can’t escape feeling the stress of what awaits – the tee of the infamous island green and the potential ruin inherent at the course’s signature hole.

“If you’re in the back of the field, it’s kind of fun because the crowd is buzzing. But if you’re in contention it’s a totally different feeling,” defending champion Jason Day said this week. “You should be able to hit a green from 130 yards with a wedge in your hand but that water magnifies the fear by a 100 fold. And if the wind is really swirling you just have to pray. You don’t want to embarrass yourself in front of all the people or kill your chances of winning.

“You don’t want to look at the water but you have to look at the green, so you can’t miss seeing the water. I usually try and keep my head down as I walk there. I don’t like people staring at me anyways, but I just keep my head down for as long as I can so I don’t look at the water until I have to.”

There have been plenty of horror stories on the hole during The Players. In Friday’s second round, Scott Piercy knocked two balls into the water and made a snowman 8. Zac Blair hit three balls into the water and made 9. In the third round of the 2005 Players, Bob Tway hit four balls into the water and walked off with a 12, the worst score on the hole in tournament history.

Reigning Masters champion Sergio Garcia has a mixed history on the hole.

He won the 2008 Players on the first playoff hole when Paul Goydos’ tee shot got knocked down by a gust of wind and ended in a watery grave. In 2013, Garcia, tied for the lead on Sunday with Tiger Woods, dumped two balls into the water, made a quadruple-bogey 7 and saw his rival claim the hardware. This year, Garcia made a hole-in-one on Thursday and a par on Friday when his tee shot hit a bulkhead and bounced forward onto the green instead of ricocheting backward into the H2O.

“If you’re in contention, you obviously feel it,” Garcia said. “When you’re walking to the tee you try to think about all the good times you’ve had there. Once you get there it’s not easy. It’s definitely the most nerve-wracking, 130-, 140-yard shot we hit all year. And that’s what you can’t think about when you’re taking that walk. But how can’t you think about it?
“You just try to keep steady with your thoughts.”

Sports psychologist Mo Pickens, who works with major champions Zach Johnson and Stewart Cink and other pros, said a battle starts brewing between the ears as the players begin the walk.

“A lot of them are having thoughts; don’t hit it into the water, don’t embarrass yourself, don’t make the crowd groan,” Pickens said. “For my guys, I tell them as they’re walking to the tee to start focusing on where they want to look, picking the shot they want to hit, and concentrating on some sort of sensation, like keying your mind on making a full turn on your swing or making sure to get through the ball.

“It’s like the Devil and the Angel sitting on your shoulders. You hear a calming voice, and then you hear the fear. You go back and forth with your thoughts. But you have to find a way for the Angel to be stronger than the Devil.”