Quail Hollow’s 18th hole putting players at PGA Championship in wet situations
The Green Mile is so glorious because it is so hard. Time and time again, Quail Hollow’s 16th, 17th and 18th holes humanize professionals.
On Thursday, Scottie Scheffler, Rory McIlroy and Xander Schauffele — the respective No. 1, 2 and 3 players in the world — all made double bogey on No. 16. It was the hardest hole on the course during the opening round.
Which leads us to the hardest hole on Friday. As of the late afternoon, No. 18 was by far the most treacherous hole on the course — a 474-yard par 4 where the average score was over 4.55. Players were far more likely to walk off Quail Hollow’s most-notable hole with a double bogey than a birdie.
What’s made the 18th so fun this week is its ability — even for just a second — to embarrass the best golfers on the planet. It’s relatable that, yes, professionals can also find themselves in the most bizarre, humiliating situations on a golf course.
On Thursday, Tony Finau hooked his drive toward the creek that runs along the entirety of the 18th. On a drier week, the ball would have almost assuredly rolled through the rough, dunked into the water and forced Finau to drop with a one-stroke penalty.
Instead, perhaps because of all the rain that fell earlier in the week, Finau’s drive stayed dry, settling just inches to the right of the creek. Which meant Finau had basically two options: One, take the penalty and drop his ball in a better situation, or two, get wet.
He chose the latter. But rather than making any attempt to stay dry — taking shoes or socks off, rolling up his pants — Finau plopped himself in the water, got set and hit a 63-yard pitch into the fairway.
The worst part: Because he started on hole 10, Finau still had to play nine more holes with soggy shoes.
To watch professionals who make millions playing this game have to partially undress in the middle of a crowd to hit a shot out of a stream is maybe why some folks are just fine watching those same guys have to hit mud balls.
“I think it just causes chaos for the fans,” said Max Homa. “It’s supposed to be entertaining, so seeing people who can look like robots for a while look completely silly isn’t the worst except when it’s you.”
On Friday, Lucas Glover ended up in almost the exact same situation as Finau. The Clemson alum — who also started the day on No. 10 — hooked his drive on the 18th and his ball settled just before the water.
Glover walked up to the ball and was pretty pleased. It was a solid lie and, best of all, it wasn’t wet.
He admitted he hadn’t seen the pictures of Finau — socks, shoes and all — from Thursday, but in any case, he did the opposite. Glover took off his socks and shoes, hiked up his gray pants and went barefoot into the creek.
You couldn’t help but get some Jean van de Velde 1999 Open Championship flashbacks.
With a stream up to his shins, Glover poked a shot back into the fairway and eventually made bogey. The worst part, though, is the after. Everyone’s staring. You’ve got to dry your feet and then re-dress yourself before walking to hit another shot.
“You’re holding everybody up.” Glover said.
It helps, though, if the foot bath was worth it — take Justin Thomas, for example. On Thursday, his approach shot went way left — nestling in a little patch of grass between the stream and a boulder.
It required the rare one-foot-in-one-foot-out shot. Thomas shed his left shoe and sock, put his lead foot right near the water and chopped down on his golf ball. It skidded across the green and nestled 12 feet from the hole.
Sometimes it pays to get a little wet.
