17th hole at TPC Sawgrass swallows up 120,000 golf balls every year

The par-3 17th hole at TPC Sawgrass measures only 137 yards from the back tees, but it's still one of the most intimidating holes in golf. 

Dozens of PGA Tour players find the water surrounding the island green at the Players Championship every year. If the best players in the world consistently have trouble with such a short hole, just imagine how tough it is for the tens of thousands of amateurs who try their luck at the island green. 

The Stadium Course at TPC Sawgrass is a public golf course, so anyone can play the PGA Tour venue as long as they have $1,000 to shell out for greens fees and caddie tips. If you get a chance to play the Pete Dye masterpiece, be careful what you wish for.

According to National Club Golfer, an estimated 120,000 golf balls find a watery grave surrounding the 17th hole every year. Most of those come from amateurs, obviously, but even pros have found the drink an average of 56.5 times per year at the Players Championship since 2017. A total of 925 balls have taken a splash on 17 during competition since 2003. 

In 2023, the PGA Tour conducted an experiment to find out how brutal the island green can be to high-handicappers. It followed 95 golfers at TPC Sawgrass one day and tracked the carnage that ensued. From that group of 95 golfers, 102 balls found the water on 17. More than half of the group made a double bogey or worse, and only three players were lucky enough to make a birdie.