Blog: Wednesday at TPC Sawgrass
By T.J. Auclair, PGATOUR.COM Interactive Producer
Editor's Note: Today's the final chance for the field to prepare for THE PLAYERS, which begins Thursday morning. PGATOUR.COM's T.J. Auclair is on the course all day, filing his observations. Send him your questions on our pages on Facebook and Twitter.
GOT A QUESTION OR A COMMENT FOR T.J.? -- Share your thoughts on Twitter or Facebook, and he'll try to get back to you as soon as he can.
2:51 p.m. -- Thanks for tuning into the practice round blog. The range, practice greens and course are starting to thin out. With that, I'm headed back in. Enjoy the tournament.
2:18 p.m. -- It looks like Trevor Immelman found some clothes to match his new Green Jacket. The Masters champion just made his way to the range sporting a bright green shirt with green and white plaid pants.
No sooner did Immelman get to his spot on the range, a golf cart picked him up and drove him to the quieter far end of the range - after he signed a couple of autographs, of course.
1:51 p.m. -- Just caught up with Camilo Villegas in between shots on the range. After saying hello, I asked when it was that he changed his name to, "Camilio." He said, "Yeah, did you like that one? You should hear some of the stuff they call me."
That got me thinking - Camilio kinda fits for Villegas. It's like a "Camilo"/"Fabio" hybrid. Like Fabio, Camilo's got the muscles and the flowing hair.
Interesting. We might be on to something here.
1:34 p.m. -- In search of a little, much-needed cool air, I'm now sitting inside the clubhouse at TPC Sawgrass.
It's amazing to think that it took right around a year to construct this massive masterpiece.
Right now, it's loaded with clubhouse-pass holders waiting to dine, taking in the atmosphere and spending plenty of money in the pro shop.
Believe me, the pictures you see in magazines and on television do the beauty of this clubhouse no justice.
1:17 p.m. -- Robert Garrigus just walked from the range back to the clubhouse signing autographs along the way.
One fan asked, "so is this wind going to make 17 tough?"
Garrigus stared at the man, shrugged his shoulders and said, "Man, the entire damn hole is tough, wind or no wind!"
LEARN MORE ABOUT 17: Flash presentation of the island green
1:12 p.m. -- One of the bigger galleries of the day is assembled by the practice chipping area right now watching Brandt Snedeker work on his short game. WATCH: Snedeker on the youth movement 
Snedeker has rock-star status on the TOUR these days. He earned his first win as a rookie last year at the Wyndham Championship but truly had his coming-out party last month at the Masters.
1 p.m. -- The driving range has filled out significantly more now than it was this morning. Several players have swing coaches by their side, while others have representatives from various club-making companies tweaking their clubs before play begins tomorrow.
Second-year TOUR player Steve Marino is alone at the end of the range working on hitting mid-iron shots into what has become a stiff wind.
12:38 p.m. -- OK, after a quick lunch, I'm back at it. Here's a question from Josh Grodin:
"T.J., give us some other super sleepers besides Ryuji Imada. How bout Mathew Goggin? He's been top 20 in his last four starts this year and finished tied for 12th last year at THE PLAYERS.
"Who looks comfortable out there in today's practice round?"
Josh - as for the sleepers, yes, Goggin would be a good pick, and he's been playing great lately.
There are guidelines for we "experts" when making our picks, which you can find in the editor's notehere.
However, I firmly believe this will be a strong week for Imada. As for others that fit in our guidelines, here are a few: David Toms; Ben Crane; and Justin Leonard.
And for who looks comfortable? To be honest, Josh, the only guys that don't look comfortable are the caddies hitting tee shots on 17. Everyone is dialed in and just getting a feel for the course, many of them hitting multiple shots to various locations on the greens where they expect to see pin placements once the tournament starts.
11:33 a.m. -- After cruising through the back nine, I've just made my way over to the terrific Stadium Village.
The Stadium Village sign reads: "Featuring the best of Stadium golf, including a simulated shot to the 16th hole, the UBS 17th Challenge, and the final putt on a replica of the 18th green. We hope you enjoy this fan experience!"
And it looks like quite the experience. The UBS 17th Challenge is a netted structure, similar to an enormous batting cage. At the far end is a turf tee box, where fans tee off over what looks like an olympic-sized pool of water, hoping to stick their shot on the undulating scaled-down version of No. 17. Depending on your performance, you can win some pretty great prizes here.
So far, the fans are making out better than the poor caddies on the real hole.
11 a.m. -- I just got this question from "Al Shaw/Roms" via our PGATOUR.COM Facebook page (feel free to interact with me, folks!):
"Any idea how Allenby or Hunter Mahan are doing through practice? Deciding where to place my fazoos."
Al/Roms - I did see Allenby a while back on the range, but I haven't seen Mahan around just yet. I'm not sure what "fazoos" are, but they sound pretty important. In that case, I'd recommend sitting anywhere around 17 - great entertainment and Allenby and Mahan will eventually make their way through.
10:55 a.m. -- Don't be alarmed by the sirens you hear coming from TPC Sawgrass -- it's just the fashion police coming to detain Sweden's Henrik Stenson.
You've got to see this getup -- it's Barney the purple dinosaur meets Jesper Parnevik's form-fitting tailor.
The outfit is interesting. I need to move away from the 16th hole.
10:42 a.m. -- If you're lucky enough to get a free pass from mom to attend the final round of THE PLAYERS this Sunday on Mother's Day, I'll let you in on a little secret. Most people who have been here before know about this particular spot, but one of the greatest vantage points in all of golf is just to the left of the 16th green.
From this spot, where I'm standing right now, you can watch players hit their approach shots into the 16th green, as we'll as the tee shots and putts on No. 17. Nos. 16 and 17 are among the most influential in deciding the outcome of the tournament.
If you want this spot, get here early and plan on camping out - and bring a friend or two to alternate beverage-runs.
10:30 a.m. -- Sergio Garcia is playing his practice round with Camilo Villegas and Rocco Mediate.
While waiting to hit on the 17th tee, Garcia and Villegas made it a point to heckle the caddies teeing off in front of them.
Following the exchange - which caused two of the three caddies to hit into the water - Garcia and Villegas yelled at them to check out the jumbo screen to the left of the green. Next to the caddy name, in big, bold letters, it said, "WATER."
As Villegas was set to hit, a man said "Come on Camilio." Villegas tried to shake off the blatant mis-pronunciation of his name and as he settled back in, Garcia said, "Come on Camilio, knock it in the hole!"
Ever the professional, Villegas still didn't back off, but found the front right bunker with his tee shot.
Then he joined in the laughter with Garcia.
10:04 a.m. -- This doesn't have a lot to do with the golf, but I'm here today to share my experiences with and entertain you.
So I'm sitting in the bleachers behind the 17th green, and there's an older couple sitting beside me.
I really hope this gentleman is enjoying his time at TPC Sawgrass, because from the sounds of things, the rest of the week will be no picnic.
He just asked, "when's our wedding anniversary? It's coming up, isn't it?"
His wife's reply, which suddenly gave me chills despite the 90-degree heat: "yeah, it was last Saturday."
Ouch!
I guess it's all good though. She's an understanding woman and - five minutes later - was even applying sunscreen to her hubby's face and neck.
Also, when he looked at the jumbo screen behind the 17th tee and noted that "Bubba Johnson" was leading the TOUR in driving distance, the kind lady interjected with, "Honey, I think you mean Bubba Watson."
You can't make it up, folks.
9:46 a.m. -- I've made my way to the coolest hole in golf - TPC's par-3 island green 17th. What a hole.
It's tradition at the PLAYERS for caddies to take part in a caddie challenge on No. 17 during the Wednesday practice round.
It's obviously a special moment that all the caddies look forward to. Nick O'Hern made the experience all the more special for his looper, as he videotaped the shot that any player in the field would be happy to purchase for Sunday afternoon. The ball landed in the middle of the green, but sucked back to the front. Most importantly, it didn't get wet.
Pretty impressive, isn't it? I mean the guy has been lugging a 30-40 pound golf bag for 17 holes, taking notes in the yardage book for his man, then drops it all, has no time to get loose and keeps it dry on arguably the most daunting hole in golf with hundreds looking on. Well done.
9:24 a.m. -- Just bumped into Luke Donald on the 18th green. Looking dapper as usual in his Polo attire, the young Englishman had a colorful stride. That's because this week, Donald -- like a number of other players -- is sporting pink and white spikes on his golf shoes for a good cause.
Donald is participating in CHAMP Spikes Pink on the Links program, which raises money for breast cancer research. The program began in 2007, when PGA TOUR and LPGA players had money donated on their behalf to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation for wearing the pink-and-white spikes during Mother's Day weekend tournaments.
After the success of the first year, CHAMP decided to continue the program into 2008 and beyond -- after this weekend's tournaments, CHAMP and eBay will auction off autographed golf memorabilia including tournament-worn shoes and other tournament items by top PGA TOUR and LPGA golfers.
"Our main goal with Pink on the Links is to raise awareness and funds for breast cancer research," said Harris MacNeill, President of CHAMP. "This disease strikes so many women. We hope all golfers choose to support the fight. We want to capitalize on the success of our inaugural year and have players on every major tour wearing the pink and white spikes in 2008."
9:15 a.m. -- More on the ninth green - David Toms just came through. He practiced hitting a few putts while an official stood off to the side.
When Toms finished, the official walked back onto the green with what looks like a can of spray paint and a sleeve of golf balls.
He set the can down on various parts of the green and proceeded to gently drop golf balls toward the can, probably looking for pin positions for the week.
So far, through his little test, even the uphill putts seem to be moving faster than the cars at Talladega.
And, if the forecast holds - splendid sunshine with temperatures in the high-80s to low 90s - good luck, fellas.
9:09 a.m. -- Last year during the practice round, I followed Tiger Woods and his regular practice partner Bubba Watson. With Tiger nursing his left knee after post-Masters surgery this year, Bubba had to find a new practice buddy. Sorry to disappoint you, but it's not Steve Elkington - although Elk would have been great, passing along the wisdom he has from winning two PLAYERS Championships.
Instead, it's Aussie Aaron Baddeley. The twosome just finished the ninth hole and signed autographs for the handful of people lining the walkway from the ninth green to the 10th tee.
And, yes, in case you were wondering, a little more than a handful were following Bubba around this time a year ago. In fact, just following the Woods-Watson pairing was itself a handful.
8:49 a.m. -- The practice green, which lies at the bottom of a hill just to the right of the clubhouse (if you're looking directly at the clubhouse), is a little bare at the moment. Just two players are putting - Jeff Overton and John Rollins.
While there are only a couple of players, there are hundreds of putters. Companies like STX, Never Compromise, Rife, Rossa, Macgregor, SeeMore, Srixon and more have bags lining the edges of the green in hopes that players will elect to use one of their magic wands once THE PLAYERS begins on Thursday.
Essentially, if you died and went to putter heaven, I'd probably be looking at Overton, Rollins and you right now.
8:40 a.m. -- Ahhh... You've got to love the smell of freshly cut Sawgrass in the morning. While your chained to your desk all morning and afternoon today, I'll also be chained to mine.
As it turns out, my office for the day happens to be sprawling acres of the lovely THE PLAYERS Stadium Course at TPC Sawgrass.
So, take a break from your crazy work day and hit "refresh" every once in a while as I keep you posted on all the happenings through my eyes, fingers and Blackberry throughout the Wednesday practice round.
OK, I'll be back in just a few. The glorious sunshine on the range coupled with the blinding, bright-white attire of England's Ian Poulter has temporarily messed with my vision. I need to go run the eyes under some cold water.
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