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PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. (AP) -Paul Goydos hit the first and the last ball into the murky lagoon surrounding the famed par-3 17th during The Players Championship.
One was much more costly than the other.
Goydos' wedge shot from 128 yards came up a little short in the first playoff hole Sunday against Sergio Garcia, ending his chance at winning for the third time in 16 years on the PGA Tour.
"The hole was designed to do exactly what it did. It got me instead of somebody else," said Goydos, a 43-year-old self-described journeyman.
Goydos, who started the day with a one-shot lead over Kenny Perry, also missed a 15-foot par putt on the last hole for the win. He closed with a 74.
And then he headed back to the most notorious hole on the Stadium Course at TPC Sawgrass.
He had hoped to hit the same shot that carded him a par at the island green about a half-hour earlier. The sun was still casting long shadows, the wind still blowing left to right at a steady 30 mph and the pin still tucked behind a bunker on the right side.
Goydos wanted the same result, something in the middle of the green that would give him a chance at birdie.
No such luck.
He ended up with something more like his shot at 17 on Thursday, which ended up wet and was the first of 65 balls to find the water.
Goydos' ball flight was a bit high this time around, causing it to hang in the stiff breeze and then fall a few feet short of the fringe.
"This one kind of floated on me and the ball ended up sinking," he said.
Goydos still figured he had a shot, especially at such a treacherous hole that wreaked havoc on most of the field all weekend.
