The #1 Tension Hole & How To Beat It
Hole #17 at TPC Sawgrass is a great example of a golf hole that is always in the back of a player’s mind throughout a round. The thought that a difficult hole is fast approaching is one of the main causes of unwanted tension in the golf swing. The “Throwing Clubs Drill” (yes, we said throwing the clubs!) is a great way to help release tension in your golf swing while developing the proper release through impact.
While Pete Dye has many other golf courses that are as good or better than the Stadium Course, his 17th hole (actually Alice Dye’s cocktail napkin sketch) overshadows the rest of the course like no other hole in golf. Iconic! Not for its risk-reward but for the do-or-die pressure it brings not only to tour players, but any golfer who stands on that tee. While some players may not be raving fans; Tiger Woods once said, ”I’ve always thought that hole is too gimmicky for the 17th hole of a major championship.”Mark Calcavecchia had the best way I have heard to describe the feeling of what it is like to play TPC Sawgrass and the 17th; “It is like having a 3 o’clock appointment for a root canal. You’re thinking about it all morning and you feel bad all day. You kind of know sooner or later you’ve got to get to it.” That kind of tension can be disastrous for your game. So check out the “Throwing Clubs Drill” to relieve the tension. I’ve had a chance to play #17 at TPC Sawgrass, and I’m happy to say my root canal ended on the green with two putts and a par.