David Duval and Justin Leonard on The Genius of Pete Dye

Two former Players champs, David Duval and Justin Leonard, have great regard for the genius designs from Pete Dye.

While others may complain about the Pete Dye designed golf course, both David Duval and Justin Leonard, now on Golf Channel, explained to media why Dye’s TPC Sawgrass, home of The Players, is so exceptional. They also described some of the subtleties in the design of the course and explained what it asks of a skilled golfer in terms of golf shots.

Justin Leonard said the degree of difficulty is demonstrated by the first two shots on the 16th, a par five on the finishing stretch that golf fans will see on the telecast of The Players.

"“I think of 16, where it’s right to left off the tee, then you need to move it left to right into the green,” he detailed. “There’s a little area left of the green to bail out, but you can’t see it ( from the fairway) because of the tree and because of the area under the tree that’s raised up.”More from Pro Golf NowGolf Rumors: LIV set to sign Masters Champion in stunning dealFantasy Golf: Grant Thornton Invitational DFS Player SelectionsBrutal return leaves Will Zalatoris looking towards 2024Stars You Know at World Champions Cup Starts Thursday at ConcessionFantasy Golf: An Early Look at the 2024 Masters Tournament"

David Duval noted that there’s a great deal of shot movement required to play several of the holes on the course. He began with the second hole, also a par five, which is not seen on TV as often as the 16th.

"“It’s like off the second tee where you really have to kind of sling it around that corner, really kind of have to get it moving to the right into that green,” he explained. “If you really pay attention to seven, it’s a very similar thing. 10, very similar thing.”"

On the second hole, the drive needs to avoid water on the right portion of the fairway in the landing zone, so an ideal tee shot ends up on the left portion of the fairway. Perfect for a draw. Then the second shot needs to fade, assuming the player is going for the green in two because there are mounds along the right side of the green that protect it. Perfect for a fade.

On the 7th hole, the fairway is wide, but there is a long bunker guarding the left side of the hole and water beyond that farther left. The perfect drive would be a fade over the trouble to the right-center of the fairway. Then on the second shot, mounds guard the right side of the green, which is raised so you can’t really see the putting surface from the fairway. Another fade gets the ball onto the green softly so that it doesn’t roll off into collection areas.

The 10th hole is similar, with a long bunker on the left side of the fairway that ends just about where drives land. The perfect tee shot would be a fade over the right side of the bunker to the right side of the fairway or something from Brooks Kopeka or Dustin Johnson that just blasts over the bunker.

"“I think it’s the discomfort that he creates in a player,” Duval said about Dye. “That creates indecision, and that’s where you get tripped up.”"

Duval noted that he finally figured out that if he stood on a Pete Dye hole and looked backward, he could clearly see the shots he should have hit. Whereas looking at the hole as the golfer plays it, it was harder to see where the next shot should go.

"“Your eyes get pulled away from where you’re supposed to be going and what you’re supposed to be doing,” Duval noted about Dye’s visual tricks. “It’s forcing players to kind of execute and play the game like he thinks it should be in a way, and you can’t really overpower anything here. That’s why you see such a range of players who win.”"

The demands of hitting the necessary shots are also the reasons both Leonard and Duval think there has never been a repeat champion.

"“You know, there’s places that you can kind of fake it and get around,” Duval said. “This place, you have to be on top of your game physically and mentally, period, and that’s just an incredibly difficult thing to do.”"

Weather conditions also affect the course. Duval won on a baked-out course that was made extra difficult because the greens were rock hard. It was almost impossible to land the ball on the green and have it stay on the putting surface.

"“If you’re not, for lack of a better way to put it, firing on all cylinders around this golf course, it will expose you. That’s the beauty of the design,” Duval added."

While hitting the proper shot is what golf professionals want to do, it is also possible for a normal person to play TPC Sawgrass without hitting exactly those shots. It’s just to play the hole properly, those shots are part of the preferred professional arsenal. Even the straight shot works as Fred Funk and Henrik Stenson proved when they won. And that demonstrates just how many different ways there are to win at TPC Sawgrass.