NSFW
Tour pro has five feet for birdie, makes double bogey, needs our love and support
Normally at "The Bear Trap" at PGA National, it's the water lurking everywhere that can be the most terrifying aspect for a tour pro. As Nick Taylor came to find out on Thursday, the land ain't that much safer, either.
In his opening round, Taylor arrived at the par-3 17th at five-over par, a round he could have salvaged with a birdie-birdie finish. He was on track for just that after his tee shot at the 145-yarder, hitting one to four feet, 10 inches and setting up a great look at a much-needed circle on the scorecard.
That circle quickly turned into a double box in a matter of seconds, as Taylor four-putted for a disastrous double bogey without ever even sniffing the aqua:
Absolutely cruel. Also, raise your hand if you thought he was going to miss the double-bogey putt, too (slowly raises hand). Usually, the cavalier, one-handed sweep never ends well either. Taylor was fortunate it rattled the bottom of the cup.
The good news? This story might have a happy ending. On Friday morning, Taylor, who finished Thursday with a seven-over 77, made birdie on his second hole, the par-4 11th, then did this at the par-4 13th:
Two holes later, Taylor returned to The Bear Trap and got some sweet, sweet revenge. He parred 15, birdied 16 and birdied 17:
After a par on 18, Taylor turned in five-under 30, an eight-shot improvement from his back-nine 38 on Thursday. In the process, he's vaulted 52 spots up the leader board from seven over to two over, just one shot outside the projcted cut line. Considering how early it is on Friday, the cut could move to two over or even three over very quickly at PGA National, so Taylor's in a pretty good spot despite a brutal Day 1.