If you were to look up iconic par 3s in golf, chances are the 17th at TPC Sawgrass would be high on that list. Although it measures around 120-yards, the island green surrounded by water is enough to send a shiver up the spine of any level of golfer...
Just hitting the green is an achievement in itself, unless you're six-time PGA Tour winner, Chris Kirk, who on Friday managed to hit the green on the 17th for a 41st consecutive time in tournament play. This achievement put him alongside Jason Dufner for most consecutive rounds without a water ball and, on Saturday, he had the chance to better it!
At the time, Kirk was sat at one-under for the day and seven-under for the tournament. Parring the 16th, he made the 75-yard walk to the 17th tee and, after speaking with his caddie, pulled out the club and set up over the ball. As he struck the shot, it seemed online and destined for the putting surface but, heartbreakingly, the ball came up short and, with it, the record, as Kirk tied Dufner with 41 consecutive rounds without finding the water.
Chris Kirk had played 41 consecutive rounds on 17 without a water ball ... until today. His streak of 41 in a row remains tied with Jason Dufner for the most on record. pic.twitter.com/7vkucvrtdOMarch 16, 2024
What perhaps stung more for the American is that his next shot, from the tee after taking a drop, found the middle of the green safely, and Kirk went on to two-putt for a double bogey five and eventually signed for a one-over-par round of 73.
Making his debut at The Players Championship in 2011, Kirk missed the cut at the event that year, as well as in 2022 and 2023, with the American withdrawing in 2016. During the 13 year stretch, his best finish came in 2017, a tie for 12th. In all the years that the 38-year-old has played this event at TPC Sawgrass, this is the first time he has found the water at the 17th.
As mentioned, the par 3 is one of the most iconic holes in golf and has seen plenty of action over its lifetime. On Friday for example, Beau Hossler became the holder of an unwanted record at the 17th hole, with his tee shot the 1,000th to find the water on the island green. In contrast, Ryan Fox became the first player to eagle the 16th and then ace the 17th.
On Saturday, Wyndham Clark, who was engaged in an epic battle with Xander Schauffele, fatted his tee shot on the par 3, with the ball barely covering 100-yards as it found the water. To the American's credit, he did tee it up again and make a regulation birdie with his second, as the bogey dropped him one shot back of his fellow countryman going into Sunday.
