When Xander Schauffele arrived at the 11th tee at TPC Sawgrass on Friday, he was 9 under and bogey-free through his first 28 holes at The Players.
That changed quickly.
Schauffele hit the fairway off the tee, leaving 263 yards to the flagstick, but there was water and a long, winding bunker in his way.
He inexplicably discovered water, but then the ultimate mistake was made.
“It was a terrible swing,” Schauffele said. “I was a little worried.”
Schauffele played his fourth shot, and when the shot settled in the collection area under the water, he airmailed the pin in the far left corner. He couldn’t get better or worse from there, posting his first drop shot of the week, a double-bogey 7.
“I thought we could put one up there and close the lead even more. Falling back on a par-5 is never what we’re trying to do,” Schauffele explained.
“And then compound a bad wedge shot on top of that.”
However, the San Diego State team overcame the costly mistake with Schauffele’s Eagle three on the par-5 16th hole.
“I was very happy to get the next birdie and also got a bonus for making the eagle on the 16th,” Schauffele said.
His eagles were a sight to behold.
After bombing a 328-yard drive that split the fairway, Schauffele knocked his approach out 178 yards to 9 feet.he is calm rolled it up for the eaglewhich pushed him up to 10 under par and ultimately tied for second place.
Playing No. 16, the reigning U.S. Open champion closed the gap on Windham Clark to four, posting a 7-under 65 for the second day in a row.
“All you’re trying to do is put pressure on someone,” Schauffele explained.
“[Clark has] I’ve been playing great golf the last few months, I’ve got power and precision and I’m very confident right now. So it’s important to be in the last group, to put pressure on him and try to move forward. ”
Schauffele will play in Saturday’s final draw with Clark despite finishing tied for second with Canadian Nick Taylor, who recently won the WM Phoenix Open in a thrilling playoff.
Taylor finished his round a few minutes after Schauffele, allowing the American to be in the final group.
But Schauffele nearly missed that opportunity on the par-4 18th, the most difficult hole at TPC Sawgrass.
Schauffele’s drive ended up in the trees and he missed the fairway to the right. With water lurking to his left, he faced a formidable punch shot on approach.
“It’s definitely scary. You’re on pine straw. It felt like the ball was floating,” Schauffele said of the second on the 18th.
“The 18th fairway is getting pretty solid. I hit the hybrid. [off the tee] I thought 295 yards was impossible for me. That’s why I ended up with pine straw. ”
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I had 167 yards left and decided to hit it with a low 6-iron.
“Any ball that bounces to the left or doesn’t hit the green on the 18th, it just rolls and rolls and rolls into the water,” Schauffele said.
“My caddy, Austin. [Kaiser] And we talked about hitting the 18 logo behind the green with a little fade, and that was about as good a shot as I could hit. ”
Schauffele made the miraculous shot and it came to rest on the putting surface 48 feet away. He then two-putted for par and shot a 3-under 69.
Although he faces a sizable deficit, with 36 holes remaining, Schauffele knows it’s too early to anoint him the champion.
“To be honest, it’s a little premature,” Schauffele said.
“I think it should be a little bit easier because we won the come-from-behind, but for the most part we’re all just here. We stick to our process and get into our own world. And you guys are being kind.” When it works, you forget where you are. ”
In fact, Schauffele forgot about course management on Friday’s 11th hole. But on his subsequent seven holes he quickly rediscovered it. So he has a good chance of winning his first Players Championship on Sunday night.
Jack Mirko is a golf staff writer for SB Nation’s Playing Through.Be sure to check it out @_PlayingThrough Cover more golf. You can follow him on Twitter @jack_milko In the same way.
