Saturday’s high winds make TPC Sawgrass’ 17th even tougher

PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. – Caddies should’ve been compensated with hazard pay. They may need to re-sod the drop area before Sunday.

RELATED: Remembering five toughest days at TPC Sawgrass

High winds – including gusts up to 35 mph – hit TPC Sawgrass on Saturday and nowhere were their impact more strongly felt than at the course’s trademark hole. One of Richard Branson’s private islands had a higher population density than the 17th hole on Saturday.

Just hitting the green was cause for celebration.

Twenty-one players had to play the 17th hole Saturday afternoon as they completed the weather-delayed first round. An extra 48 hours wasn’t enough time to prepare for what awaited. Those 21 unlucky souls combined to put 10 balls into the lake that surrounds No. 17. They played the hole in an average score of 4.1 strokes.

There were calls from some on social media, most notably Golf Channel commentator and former TOUR winner Brandel Chamblee, to suspend play because of what was happening at 17. They wanted a rules official to step in, like a boxing referee protecting an overmatched opponent from being pummeled by Mike Tyson.

But, after two days of heavy rains that soaked the Stadium Course, the show had to go on. The sun was finally shining on TPC Sawgrass, and the wind wasn’t blowing hard enough to move balls on the greens, the one condition that would have necessitated another suspension of play.

The difficulty was apparent right from the start, as the first three players to play the hole Saturday all hit it into the water. These guys were no slouches, either. It was the star-studded group of Xander Schauffele, Brooks Koepka and Scottie Scheffler.

An innocuous wedge shot under calm conditions, players were debating between 7- and 8-irons at 17 on Saturday. They needed to calculate the perfect combination of trajectory and force to find the putting surface. Hit it too high and your ball could be knocked down by the wind, which was blowing into the players and from the left. Hit it too low, however, and it may not take enough yardage off.

That’s exactly what happened to Billy Horschel. His ball was still in the air when he barked, “That’s over the green.” He was right, as his ball bounced off the back of the island and into the lake.

“I knew it. I knew it,” he barked at his caddie. “I told you I flight it better than everyone else.”

Matt Kuchar hit a 6-iron, his ball sailing over the water and onto the walkway that leads players on and off the island green. “At least it’s dry,” someone said after Kuchar’s ball landed in that awkward position.

Many players took a detour to the drop area before arriving at the walkway. Five of the first nine players to visit 17 found the water. The group of Matt NeSmith (4), Brendan Steele (6) and Emiliano Grillo (7) played the hole in a combined 17 strokes.

The wind was blowing so hard that there were ripples on the lake. It was strong enough to nearly topple a staff bag. Jim Mackay had to hold Collin Morikawa’s bag upright while Morikawa’s caddie, J.J. Jakovac, discussed the tee shot at 17 with his boss. The hat of Matt Kelly, the caddie for Marc Leishman, was whisked off his head and into the crowd by the wind.

Kelly’s boss was one of the fortunate ones, hitting his tee shot to 7 feet. Leishman raised his fist to the crowd when his ball found the green, earning an enthusiastic ovation from the fans. Zach Johnson, the next man to hit, offered Leishman a congratulatory fist bump.

It was reminiscent of the hardest day in the 17th hole’s history, the first round of the 1984 PLAYERS, when it played to a 3.85 scoring average.

“It’s the easiest par 5 on the course,” John Mahaffey joked about TPC Sawgrass’ 17th.

Let’s be fair. It was at least a tough par-4 on Saturday.