Hurricane Irma Leaves TPC Sawgrass No. 17 Island Green Partially Submerged

Hurricane Irma has devastated many parts of Florida and it has affected many golfers in the state. The best golf courses in Florida have also been affected by the strong storm.

One of the most notable courses in South Florida is TPC Sawgrass, home of THE PLAYERS Championship every year. After the hurricane went through, the course was ravaged leading to this statement from course officials:

“TPC Sawgrass was impacted by the storm and has initiated cleanup efforts across the property. We will provide a full assessment and updates as we progress, including tentative re-opening dates as they become available.”

Luckily, the biggest event of that TPC Sawgrass doesn’t seem to have been affected. The course also announced in their statement that PGA officials are optimistic that the 2018 PLAYERS Championship will not be affected by the damage suffered at the course. That means Si Woo Kim will be able to defend his title as scheduled.

re: 'fake' tpc sawgrass pics from this weekend…first one here is real, from Monday, second is the old one. so not a great prank all in all pic.twitter.com/WcI40WUW4f

— Dylan Dethier (@dylan_dethier) September 14, 2017

TPC Sawgrass is also the home of one of the most iconic holes in all of golf, the 17th “Island Green Hole.” Because Hurricane Irma caused so much flooding in the area, it probably wouldn’t surprise you to know that part of the famous green is under water, as seen in the picture above. Looking at the picture, the hole looks almost unrecognizable.

For fans that are worried that the hole can’t be played the same, the picture that is placed next to the effects of Hurricane Irma are the effects on the green after Hurricane Matthew last year. It appears that the green was swallowed even more by Matthew than it was by Irma, and the hole showed no ill effects this past March. So there should be no reason to worry for 2018.

It is sad to see such a beautiful golf hole submerged thanks to mother nature but TPC Sawgrass is resilient. Expect the course to look good as new when players step foot back in Florida to play over the next few weeks.

Cover Image via Twitter