FAILURE WILL BE on display Thursday through Sunday when The Players Championship, the unofficial fifth major of the PGA Tour golf season, tees it up at the TPC at Sawgrass in Florida.
A viewer will certainly see successes, as eagles, birdies, sand saves and the like will abound on the course.
But the pond surrounding the dastardly island green on the par-3 17th at Sawgrass will surely gobble up a good number of tee shots, and those misses will be replayed, particularly if they occur during Sunday’s final round.
Remember Sergio Garcia’s breakdown at last year’s event?
The former Players champion wilted on No. 17, hitting his first tee shot short of the green into the water, and his second attempt bounced off the green, off a piling and back into the water.
He ended up with a quadruple-bogey 6 on the hole and lost the tourney to Tiger Woods.
A collection of memorable moments from the 17th can be found at tinyurl.com/pdn-sawgrass.
Television coverage is set for the Golf Channel from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Thursday and Friday and 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. Saturday and Sunday.
NBC will take over on Saturday and Sunday, with coverage from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.
SunLand demo days
A TaylorMade demo day is set for 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Thursday at SunLand Golf & Country Club in Sequim.
SunLand will be custom-fitting for the new TaylorMade Jet Speed driver and more.
Sign up by Saturday
Registration closes Saturday for a new YMCA Youth Golf Academy for youth ages 8 to 14 offered in a partnership between Peninsula Golf Club and Olympic Peninsula Family YMCA.
Participants will learn and develop golf skills under the leadership of experienced Peninsula golfers.
The academy will run from 5:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. Mondays and Fridays from May 19 to June 27.
Cost is $45 for YMCA members and $60 for the public.
To sign up, phone Lee Routledge at the YMCA at 360-452-9244 or email lee@olympicpeninsulaymca.org.
Monday Night Skins
Discovery Bay Golf Course near Port Townsend will start a weekly Monday night skins game starting at 5 p.m. this Monday.
This will be a shotgun start.
For more information, phone Discovery Bay at 360 385-0704.
Hospice scramble
A four-person scramble and raffle to support the efforts of Volunteer Hospice of Clallam County will be hosted by the Cedars at Dungeness Lady Niners on Thursday, May 15.
An 11 a.m. shotgun start will get things going, and female golfers in Clallam County (and I would expect they wouldn’t turn away a Jefferson County resident) are invited to participate.
The tournament is being held in appreciation of all the support and assistance Volunteer Hospice has provided lady golfers and their families who have passed away.
For more information, phone 360-808-3440.
Callaway/Adams demo
The Cedars at Dungeness will host a Callaway/Adams Golf demo day featuring the companies’ 2014 product lines from noon to 5 p.m. Wednesday, May 14.
Appointments can be made by calling 360-683 6344.
Make an appointment and receive a free hot dog.
Anyone who makes a club purchase will be put into a drawing to win a new Callaway Mack Daddy 2 wedge of his or her choice.
Grad party tourney
A Graduation Party Golf Tournament benefit for the Sequim High School Class of 2014 is set for Cedars at Dungeness on Saturday, May 24.
Funds raised will go toward putting on an alcohol- and drug-free party after the Sequim High Class of 2014’s graduation ceremony.
The four-person best-ball scramble tournament will begin with a 1 p.m. shotgun start.
The tournament fee is $75 per player and includes golf, range balls, power cart and dinner.
Prizes will be awarded to the top teams, and there will be a competition for long drive and closest to the pin.
A new car from Wilder Auto will be given to the person who hits a hole-in-one on the 17th hole.
Sequim High School golf team members will be auctioned off to the highest bidders to add a fifth player and improve your team’s chances of winning.
Hole sponsors and putting greens sponsorships also are available.
For more information, phone Garrett Smithson at Cedars at Dungeness at 360-683-6344, ext. 4 or email ggsmithson@7cedarsresort.com, or phone Meg Pinza at 360-930-4510 or email candlefish46@gmail.com.
PT Women’s Club
The Port Townsend Women’s Golf Club played the game “Hate ‘Em” last Tuesday with Katherine Buchanan taking first place, Starla Audette in second and Shelly Peterson third.
The club plays every Tuesday morning at the Port Townsend Golf Club at 9:30 a.m.
Beginners and experienced women golfers are all welcome.
Peninsula Ladies
The Peninsula Golf Club Lady Golfers celebrated with a season-opening kickoff last Wednesday.
“A pre-golf breakfast at the Peninsula clubhouse was enjoyed by the members,” said ladies member Sandy Granger.
The format for the golf outing was a nine-hole scramble with three-person teams.
Ruth Thomson, Dolly Burnett and Gloria Andrus took first, while Dona Scarcia, Rena Peabody and Granger were second.
Linda Beatty, Helen Arnold, and Sue Barber were third.
A new club member, Phillis Olson, was introduced and welcomed to the group.
“The sunny weather was enjoyed by the ladies, hopefully, a promise of more to come in this beautiful spring at Peninsula Golf Club,” Granger said.
Guests are welcome to join the Peninsula Lady Golfers on Wednesday mornings at 9 a.m.
For more information, phone Cindy Schlaffman at 360-460-1375 or Ruth Thomson at 360-457-5888.
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Golf columnist Michael Carman can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 5152 or pdngolf@gmail.com.
His column appears Wednesdays.
