DailyExpertNews
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“The Island Green” – three words that frighten even the most talented golfers.
A short par-three of 125 yards surrounded by water, TPC Sawgrass’s iconic penultimate hole has drowned many a dream at The Players Championship for over four decades.
On Thursday, Hayden Buckley had other ideas.
After a steady start to his first round on the PGA Tour’s flagship event, the American – starting from the 10th hole – finished 17th at one-under-par, tied for eighth.
A swing later, he was tied for the lead.
Using a pitching wedge, the 27-year-old had sent his ball across the water and comfortably onto the green; his ball bounced three times before coming to rest and slowly rolling into the cup.
A rapturous crowd roared with joy as Buckley gleefully tossed his hat before giving his caddy a high-fif and then playing his partners Adam Long and Taylor Montgomery.
It is only the 11th ace on the famed hole in The Players Championship’s 49-year history, and the second in successive tournaments after Irish golfer Shane Lowry brought the number into double digits in last year’s edition.
After a 14-year streak without a hole-in-one between 2002 and 2016, there are now five aces on the 17th hole in the last eight editions of the fifth major.
For Buckley, who arrived in Florida as world No. 107 and is chasing his first PGA Tour title, it was the second hole-in-one of his PGA Tour career after his first at the 2021 Shriners Children’s Open – coincidentally also on the 17th hole.
The fairytale continued as Buckley birdie on the ensuing par-four, making him the first player on record in The Players Championship to follow up a hole-in-one on the 17th with a birdie on the 18th, according to the PGA Tour.
A second consecutive birdie after the turn brought him to five-under, though it marked the American’s round high.
Six dropped shots – including two double bogeys on the 6th and 8th holes – saw him exit the course tied for 38th on a one-over 73.
