Players needs a three-hole playoff

Florida Times-Union sports columnist Gene Frenette was at The Players Championship all week and offers some post-tournament thoughts for jacksonville.com


After seeing how quickly Sunday's sudden-death playoff at The Players ended, I think the PGA Tour needs to seriously consider going to a more extended format. It's a shame that a deadlock between eventual champion Sergio Garcia and Paul Goydos after 72 holes in such a big-time event had to end with a quick thud -- a gust of wind pulled Goydos' tee shot at No. 17 into the water.

Goydos, who did a phenomenal job of taking a one-shot lead into the final round and holding at least a share of it throughout regulation, should have had the opportunity to recover from one errant shot.

All day long, Goydos had a knack for rebounding when it looked as if the wheels might be coming off a bit. It started with that tricky, downhill 50-foot birdie putt he made at No. 4 after bogeying the second and third holes. When it looked like he might be headed for a bogey at No. 10, he holed it out from 34 yards away for a birdie.

However, with a sudden-death playoff starting at the par-three island hole, Goydos drew the first slot and it was pretty much over when his ball found water. Garcia followed with a career shot, sticking his ball within four feet of the cup and a two-putt par for the win. Goydos made double-bogey.

It was great theater, seeing everything ride on such a signature hole. But in fairness to the competitors, The Players should go to a three-hole playoff and start it at the par-five 16th hole. You'd have the most entertaining risk-reward homestretch in all of golf to decide the biggest championship outside the majors.

Each of the Grand Slam tournaments has a different playoff format. The U.S. Open has an 18-hole playoff on Monday, while the British Open and PGA Championship have four-hole and three-hole aggregate playoff formats. Only the Masters has sudden death like The Players.

The only change The Players would have to make for a three-hole playoff, especially if the agonizingly slow Garcia is involved, is move the starting time for the leaders up about 15-20 minutes on Sunday to ensure enough sunlight in case of a 72-hole deadlock. So for television purposes, it's a minor adjustment.

Goydos had several chances to close out a victory, but bogeys at No. 14, 15 and 18 opened the door for Garcia. In Goydos' defense, none of those three bogeys was all that bad except for a sloppy putt at the 15th hole. Even there, he hit a marvelous approach shot right at the flag, but the ball didn't hold on the rock-hard greens.

Garcia deserved to win, but the championship should have been decided with all three closing holes at TPC Sawgrass Players Stadium course deciding the outcome.

Hopefully, the PGA Tour considers that option in the future. It'd only help their television ratings and increase already great drama.