The game was decided on the 17th hole (par 3) of the infamous TPC Sawgrass. This hole is an ‘Island Green’ surrounded by water and is also the symbol of TPC Sawgrass. If you lose your concentration even a little, you will see the golf ball not hitting the green or going past the green and going straight into the lake. Ahn Byung-hoon (31), who participated in this competition last year, dropped the ball into the lake four times only on the 17th hole in the first round, recording a whopping octuple bogey (8 over par). It is known that 100,000 to 120,000 balls fall into the lake every year due to the high difficulty.
Cameron Smith (29, Australia) took the 9 iron on the 17th hole set at 135 yards. The ball went to the right edge of the Irish green. The space between the hall and the water was less than 3m. The ball landed exactly 1.2m from the hole. Smith made a birdie putt and took the lead by three strokes.
AP NewsSmith won the final round of the PGA Tour Players Championship held at TPC Sawgrass (par 72) in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida on the 15th, hitting a 6-under 66 to win the championship with a final total of 13-under 275. did. It is one stroke away from second place Anirvan Lahiri (India). After winning the Sentry Tournament of Champions in January, Smith returned to victory two months later, marking his fifth PGA Tour victory. His winning prize of $3.6 million (about 4.4 billion won) is the largest in golf history. That’s close to 20% of the $19.12 million Smith won four times in 159 appearances before this tournament. With this win, Smith moved up to the top prize money ranking this season ($5.79 million). Regarding the birdie on the 17th hole, Smith said, “I tried to cross the bunker in front of the green on the 17th hole, but the wind was not strong, so the ball stopped well. I was really lucky,” he said. The tournament was extended one more day for five days as the match was delayed due to heavy rain and strong winds from the first day. “It was a really long and difficult time, but I ended up at the top,” Smith said. He is really happy,” he said.
AP NewsSmith boldly attacked the course throughout this tournament, and showed off his putting skills that were close to a novelty. Smith, who holds the PGA Tour record for the least putts (18) on 18 holes, swept 10 birdies with a climax putt only in the final round. He made five birdies on the first six holes, including four consecutive birdies from the 1st to the 4th hole, and again recorded a four-hole birdie from the 10th hole.
Meanwhile, Im Seong-jae (24) and Lee Kyung-hoon (31) tied for 55th (2 over par 290). World No. 1 Jon Lam (Spain) dropped two balls into the water on the 4th hole (par 4) and lost 5 strokes to record a quadruple bogey, and was pushed down to a tie for 55th.
By Kim Dong-wook, staff reporter creating@donga.com
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