the players championship
Educational CORNER: Todd Jones, head teacher at TOUR Academy TPC Sawgrass, insight into the game in the Stadium Course.1st round players played in the Stadium Course, which is a rounded shape thanks to the hard work of the superintendent, his staff and a loving touch of "Mother.Many of the players were prepared for the course to show the signs of one of the coldest winters on record in North Florida ; however it has exceeded their expectations. The course was firm early in the week, but rain on Tuesday and Wednesday slightly softened up the fairways and greens.
Look for the players in Thursday’s morning draw to have ideal scoring conditions as the fairways will be very receptive allowing for more shots to be played from the short grass. This is significant because this course needs to be played from the fairway as the length of the rough is primed for flyers. Flyers happen when grass gets caught between the ball and club face. The result is a shot that jumps off the club with very little back spin, cuts through the air like a knuckleball and typically carries much farther than planned. Much farther than planned at TPC Sawgrass can mean certain bogey or worse.
This interesting dynamic has been brought back into play with the new groove rule. I look for the long players to benefit the most from the softer conditions as the ball will not be rolling out as much, allowing them to be aggressive off the tee. Aggressive off the tee means shorter approach shots, and as a rule of thumb shorter approach shots mean lower scores.
Look for the players in Thursday’s morning draw to have ideal scoring conditions as the fairways will be very receptive allowing for more shots to be played from the short grass. This is significant because this course needs to be played from the fairway as the length of the rough is primed for flyers. Flyers happen when grass gets caught between the ball and club face. The result is a shot that jumps off the club with very little back spin, cuts through the air like a knuckleball and typically carries much farther than planned. Much farther than planned at TPC Sawgrass can mean certain bogey or worse.
This interesting dynamic has been brought back into play with the new groove rule. I look for the long players to benefit the most from the softer conditions as the ball will not be rolling out as much, allowing them to be aggressive off the tee. Aggressive off the tee means shorter approach shots, and as a rule of thumb shorter approach shots mean lower scores.
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