Most golfers have heard of TPC Sawgrass. In fact they all have. It??s the brute with the famous island green on 17. It??s also where they hold The Players?? Championship every year. Sawgrass has that iconic recognition that not many other tracks around the world can claim ?? and for good reason, it??s pretty unique. Hell, the clubhouse is 75,000 sq. feet. And then there??s, well, the Stadium Course itself...
Oh what a circus. Mark our good host ?? who by day is Director of Comms for The Champions Tour ?? had helped jack up a bit of buzz surrounding our visit. By the time we??d hit our first tee shots a few words had been spoken to David Pilsbury (President of the PGA Tour Golf Course Properties), Bill Hughes (General Manager at TPC Sawgrass), Gary Smits (from the Florida Times Union) and John (from PGA Tour Productions). In the melee we found a few moments to hit a couple of balls, a few putts and a bunker shot or two (God knows we??d need the practice...). And then we found ourselves there, on 1 tee, taking a deep breath, hoping for the best.
Lost ball. Reload. No mulligans here, I??m pleased to report (they??re very unKiwi; we don??t like ??em). Jase & me took on Goldy & Mark in The Cart Match. After the whipping we took yesterday, surely it was our day today? Every dog has his day. This dog??s still waiting for his.
The Stadium Course was immaculate. Better than it was for The Players??, we were told ?? which seemed unlikely at first, but was believable once we got out there. The Bermuda greens were glassy and true. Less grainy than the offerings of the few days past (luckily for us they??re not being aerated until Monday). Astonishingly the rough was Rough. And Mr. Pete Dye has very unkindly put a lot of trees in the unsuspecting golfer??s way. Branches overhanging tee blocks; big palms guarding green entrances; forests planted tighter than Bob Marley??s stubble ?? for me the foliage was the big story of Sawgrass. Oh, and the water.
On nearly every hole you turn around ?? after marching 506 yards back to the tips from the cart path ?? and see menacing menacing ponds. Sometimes on both sides of the fairway. There??s no Out Of Bounds here, but really that??s cold comfort. I lost 5 balls on the front 9, and could??ve lost a few more had it not been for our diligent and watchful caddy Scott. I had a whale of a time though. We all did.
Scott and Mark piped up every now and then with tales of fortune & misfortune at tournaments gone by. ??Tiger hit 5 wood into the water over here...Hal Sutton holed out from the fairway on the Thursday and Saturday here when he won...? A bit of history is always nice ?? save for when you??re a kid being dragged round The Natural History Museum because your parents ??knew you??d enjoy it?. In fact it??s quite something walking these fairways when you consider who??s been there before you.
As if this adventure was not wacky enough, a couple of raccoons approached us by 4 green. Poor little fellas ?? which normally are nocturnal ?? must??ve had a hard night on the trash, and not been able to get to sleep. Someone must??ve chucked out a few stimulants with their banana skins, leaving these unsuspecting creatures wired and confused. Scott ushered them away from our carts and wished them good luck on their travels. I wonder where they are now? I??m sure there are myriad rehab clynics in these parts (probably one that a certain Tiger frequents), so they??ll be fine.
It really helps if you can work the ball both ways at Sawgrass. Doglegs left follow doglegs right. Sometimes the tee shot is over water; other times it??s the approach. Waste bunkers catch your eye on one hole; on the next it might be a few little pots by the green that get the heart racing. Really the whole thing is a thrilling experience. As Phil Tataurangi our old mate would say, it??s a course that ankle taps you. Even if you??re hitting the ball smoothly ?? not that I was ?? you??d still find yourself losing a shot here or there to the course, with precious few opportunities to get ??em back. Sawgrass, really, is a deviant.
Then you get to the final stretch ?? one of the most famous in golf. 16,17 and 18 are up there with 14 thru 16 at Cypress; 17, 18 at The Old Course; and 17, 18 at Pebble. Great finishing holes. 16??s a double dogleg (first left, then right) par 5, with water all along the right hand side from 200 out. Hitting a good drive puts you in a precarious position (as it did Goldy): you know you can get there, but there??s a big tree short left, and it??s all carry over water on the right. Hhhmmm. Best pause for quiet contemplation. Some idiot was hollering through the forest when Mike struck his 3 wood...you can guess what happened. Not a happy Michael. I played the more orthodox route and sunk a 40 footer for birdie. By that time the 4 hole playoff was hotting up.
On 15 tee Goldy declared that we would play a bounce match down the stretch (after he and Mark had demolished their opponents, Jase & yours truly, in the cart match 6&4). Each of us would pick a past Players?? Championship champion. I took Tim Clark; Mike took Perksy; Mark had Norman; and Jase had ??Be The Club Today? Hal Sutton. All on. Gloves off.
3 pars on 15 ?? Hal had a bogey. Perksy and Norman made double on 16 (taking them to +2); Hal made par; and Clarky made birdie (edging out into the lead at ??1). And so to the 17th. Walking round the lake you stare around the cauldron, imaging the atmosphere during tournament time. Electric it must be. Today there were no spectators save for the odd raccoon ?? just a green perched in the middle of a big pond, and a big old oak tree off to the right hand side, also floating above the water. The lads ahead took longer than usual over their putts ?? naturally ?? and eventually cleared the way. At this point it all got too much for Hal, who began to vomit out the side of his cart. Poor fella had food poisoning / kidney stones (we didn??t know at the time), and ended up in hospital the next morning.
The other 3 of us relieved ourselves through a different orifice, straight behind the hedge at the back of the tee. One of the best spots to take a leak on a golf course ?? likely to make the Top 10 list at the end of the year.
Norman led the way and dropped it in the drink, short right. Not what you want to see when you??re about to take aim. I stepped up to the plate, wedge in hand (130 yards), and flushed one to 14 feet long right. Pin was front left; my ball pitched and stopped dead in its pitch mark ?? no sign of the normal zip you??d expect from that range (which might??ve taken it stiff on another day). Knees were knocking. Then Perksy smoked a wedge to 20 feet, just over the front pot bunker. That??d prove to be a tough putt. Hal ended up on the back edge, facing a treacherous putt. What a hole. Scott gave Perksy a read that was Questionable to say the least, resulting in a 10 foot return putt. Thankfully for us all, he made it. My birdie putt slipped just past the hole, but stayed within gimme range. Thank you Very Much ?? I??ll take my par and run.
So on 18 Clark was ??1; Perks +2; Norman by the point +A LOT (after hitting the first 15 greens in regulation); and Hal +A FEW TOO. Water ALL THE WAY down the left hand side, of a 460 yard par 4. We all got a good drive away. Then I??m glad to say we all knocked it there or thereabouts in 2. 2 putt par proved enough for Clark to take out the 4 hole playoff ?? at least salvaging something from a tough day on the fairways.
I??m exhausted just recounting it all. Sawgrass more than lived up to its billing. Certainly a must do on every serious (or at least adventurous) golfer??s bucket list. If not just for the golf course, then also for the history. And the clubhouse (which we wandered through afterwards, taking in the stories told by photographs and artifacts housed between those 4 huge walls).
Thanks to TPC Sawgrass for an Awesome Experience.
I won??t keep you long, but must also mention our visit to The First Tee HQ and World Golf Hall of Fame ?? both housed in the World Golf Village 45 minutes down the road in St. Augustine. Wow. A whole village devoted to all things golf. Only in America...
Monique and John kindly took time out of their Friday afternoon to show us round The First Tee??s pretty plush offices. A slightly different kettle of fish to the modest HQ back home (which, in case you??re reading Pip, is also very nice! - just a tad smaller). John??s the chief legal counsel for the organisation, and has been involved for 9 years in just about everything from A to Z. I was interested to hear his thoughts on Where to Next for TFT ?? particularly his belief that to get real traction the program needs to be as accessible as possible, and be creative in it??s approach to bringing people to the game. Like having 9 hole facilities, not 18. Or like bringing the program into schools so Mum doesn??t have to borrow a car to drop Ted off out in the suburbs.
All good sense, really. But sometimes we forget that golf isn??t the most accessible of games ?? especially for those with modest means. There??s certainly something to be said for a flexible approach at the grass roots level ?? John??s right.
The Hall of Fame was, well, pretty much what you??d expect. Paton kindly took the time to show us round (and John joined in for the walk too). A hurried affair given the hour; something I??d like to return to with a few more hours to spare. Nevertheless we got to see The Ryder Cup, The Claret Jug, etc; Sir Bob Charles?? locker, etc ?? all the good stuff. Funny hearing Sir Bob speak about his farm back on North Eyre Road, just a mile or two from where my parents live. Brought on a touch of homesickness.
But no time for that. We all had one thing on our mind by this hour of the day ?? and that was steak. Forgot to eat lunch, and only had fruit for breakfast. At 5.30 Mark, Mike and me were Starving. So homeward bound we zipped to Base Camp Mark & Nancy for a BBQ. Nothing could??ve been more enticing than a quiet evening in their family home, with a beer in hand and some great chat. M&N really were wonderful hosts these past few days, and had plenty of stories (some from Nancy??s playing career; others from Mark??s days at crossroads in his 20s; and others still from everywhere in between). Awesome people.
That??s enough for now. Check out Goldy??s video blog, the footage for which was shot by our mate Tony Zambos God Bless His Heart.
JP
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