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Bush watched three groups play the treacherous hole in wind gusting to 35 mph. Mayfair, Bubba Watson, John Mallinger, Dean Wilson, Michael Campbell, Shaun Micheel, Mark Calcavecchia and Carl Pettersson teed it up in front of the former president.
Mayfair was the only one who didn't land safely on the green.
"I didn't see him until after I hit my shot," said Mayfair, who was 1 over after the second round. "I just wish I hit that green. I've missed it twice, two days in a row, so that hole's kind of hurting me. Other than that, I've played pretty well."
Mayfair has met Bush several times, the first one in 1987 as a member of the Walker Cup team. So Mayfair didn't hesitate to stop, shake his hand and say hello.
"I know him a little better and I feel very comfortable," Mayfair said. "It's not every day you get to meet a former president of the United States."
But Mayfair knew better than to spend too much time socializing. After all, the former president is known to enjoy fast play.
"I've heard he's very quick," Mayfair said, adding that Bush probably wouldn't spend too much time worrying about the tee shot on the 17th. "It's only 135 yards. It can't be that hard."
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TORTOISE AND THE SCARE: Anthony Kim's scariest moment of the second round had nothing to do with gusting wind or slippery greens.
Kim and playing partner Boo Weekley spotted a turtle as they walked from the tee box to the green on the par-3 No. 8. At first, Kim would only touch the turtle's shell with his wedge. But Weekley convinced him to feel it with his hand.
Just as Kim started the stroke the shell, the turtle snapped its neck upward.
"He jumped and backed up real fast," Weekley said.
"He got me pretty good," added Kim, who shot 70 and was 4 under.
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KRAFT'S BREAK: Greg Kraft didn't think his tee shot on the par-3 17th stayed on the green. He even stopped at the drop zone to hit another one.
It wasn't until he was about to drop a ball that the gallery and his playing partners alerted him that his shot landed a few feet from the edge, hidden in a sprinkler head.
"It's nice to get a good break on that hole because in 10 years I've had some bad ones," Kraft said.
Kraft was allowed a free drop from the sprinkler, then two-putted for par. He could have easily had a bogey or worse, and thanks partly to the break, he made the cut at 3 over.
"I'm just worn out. This course beat me up today," he said. "Starting at 3 over, knowing you have to shoot par to make the cut, it was a brutal day. It's a tough course."
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STUPID STAT: The video boards behind the tee and green on the 17th hole are filled with information aimed at entertaining and informing the fans. But one of the statistics might be the most useless, which is saying something.
