The TPC at Sawgrass – One of the Best Courses in Florida

Any of us who have watched a lot of golf on television (or have experience with the Tiger Woods PGA Tour series of video games) are no doubt familiar with Island Green on the Stadium Course at TPC Sawgrass. But there is much more to this suburban Jacksonville golf course than the 17th par three. Opened in 1980, the course was originally not popular with professional golfers, but adjustments made by designer Pete Dye shortly thereafter made the course much more playable.

The course is still considered as one of the most difficult in the world. It was the first of several Tournament Players Clubs (TPC) built around that time. The TPC is a chain of public and private golf courses operated by the PGA Tour with the goal that these courses host tour events. In this way, the PGA Tour can avoid sharing event profits with outside course owners.

But the first was TPC on the field at Sawgrass Stadium. The Players Championship is now played there annually, and due to its prestige and highest purse of any golf tournament, it is considered by some to be the “fifth largest”. The great thing about this course, as well as the other TPC courses around the country, is that the regular golfer can play them.

When we think of the Stadium Course at Sawgrass, what probably immediately comes to mind is the Island Green. It’s technically a peninsula, but there’s not much to shoot except for a green that’s 78 feet wide and maybe half as deep. Starting at about 132 yards for the pros, it’s a decent sized target, but it’s one of the most talked about holes on the PGA tour. Throw in a bit of wind that can be unpredictable at times and with virtually no rescue area, and you’ve got every golfer’s attention. In 2007, a record fifty balls fell into the water at this hole in one round. And the fans love it, as NBC puts eleven cameras on it during the tournament.

Perhaps the most famous and bizarre incident in hole history occurred at the 1998 Players Championship. Golfer Steve Lowery successfully hits his ball onto the green. A seagull swooped in and, after a few tries, finally picked up the ball in its beak, carried it over the water, and dropped it. If you’re curious about how this is determined, under Rule 18-1 of the Rules of Golf, a bird is considered an “outside agency,” and considering Lawry’s shot was from off the green, he was allowed place the ball in the place that the bird got hold of it.