Brandel Chamblee: Tiger could have taken a much better drop on the 17th at Sawgrass

Tiger Woods walked away from the 17th hole at the Players Championship with a quadruple bogey on Friday when he hit two in the water.

However, because Tiger’s first tee shot landed on the walkway out to the green, Golf Channel’s Brandel Chamblee believed he may have been able to drop from the point it crossed into the hazard. Chamblee, David Duval, and Frank Nobilo headed down to the 17th after the round concluded to test the theory out.

Sure enough, Woods could have dropped because his ball landed on the green and crossed the yellow penalty area. This would have left him with about a 30-foot putt through the fringe that likely would have saved him two strokes.

Apparently, Tiger wasn’t aware of that option, which brings up a good question posed to Brandel on Twitter:

Having walked this hole many times, it’s true, there are no marshals in that area to point out where the ball lands.

Maybe there should be from now on.

David Duval also mentions in the clip that he spoke to Tiger after his round and Tiger didn’t realize that was even an option.

I just want to point out that the new drop from knee-height rule would have helped Tiger out here.

Author: Michael Shamburger

Michael is the founder and Editor in Chief of The Stiff Shaft. He spent 15 years covering golf for TheBigLead, Golfweek, and Golf Channel. Don't base your opinion on those of others. Do your research and form your own opinions.

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