Wyndham Clark makes big bogey save after shocking tee shot on No. 17

PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. – The penalties can be steep for even the slightest misstep at TPC Sawgrass' Stadium Course. Wyndham Clark was the latest example after his shocking tee shot on the famed 17th on Saturday afternoon.

Clark had been cruising at THE PLAYERS Championship, taking a four-shot lead at the tournament’s halfway point. He was 3-under par for the day and tied for the lead with Xander Schauffele when they stepped to the 17th tee. But then a poor swing resulted in a tee shot that fell 20 yards short of the putting surface, shocking a crowd that was ready to coronate Clark at the start of the day.

There were some fears that if Clark hit his sand wedge too hard, it would land on the top shelf of the two-tiered green. That’s why Clark’s caddie, John Ellis, told Clark to swing a little easier.

“He thought if I nuked it, it could get on (the top tier),” Clark said. “As we were walking to put the ball down, he's like, ‘Let's take a little off a full sand wedge.’ As I was over the ball I kind of got to the top and I was like, 'Take a little off,' and then I just kind of decelerated and chunked it. It wasn't really a lack of focus or anything. It just was honestly a poor swing.”

Clark elected to hit his next shot from the tee box because a full swing would create more spin than the shorter shot players face from the drop area. With the pin on the front of the green below a steep slope, that spin could be used to draw the ball closer to the hole. As a testament to the toughness Clark has shown over the past year, he wedged to 7 feet and made the putt for bogey. He will start the final round one shot behind Schauffele after both made par on No. 18.

“It's unfortunate on a hole that's so iconic and has a bunch of trouble to have kind of your worst swing of the day,” Clark said. “But I followed it with a great swing and a great putt. I'm in the final group tomorrow, which is huge.”

Sometimes the bogey saves are more important than the birdies, and Clark is hopeful that what he did at No. 17 on Saturday will be remembered as crucial moment in his latest victory in a big event. Clark is hoping to add THE PLAYERS to a resume that already includes the U.S. Open and two Signature Events.

“I'm hoping that's a huge point in the tournament,” he said, “and we look back after tomorrow and look at that hole and say, 'Hey, that was maybe the shot and the putt that meant it all.'”