Simpson, eh? Webb goes low at Players

But beware the infamous 17th.....

Words: Montgomery C. Burns

Webb Simpson was playing the round of his lifetime at the Players Championship - until the 17th bared its teeth.....

Starting with a par on the first, he then proceeded to eagle the second. So far, so good. He added another 3 birdies on the front nine on the 5th, 7th and 9th to make the turn in 31 - 5 under for the nine.

Now most players would be more than happy carding a 5 under for the whole round. But not Webb Simpson!

He started his back nine with a par, but then went into overdrive with consecutive birdies on the 11th, 12th, 13th, 14th, 15th and 16th to take him to a staggering 11 under for his round.

Then it was time for the dreaded 17th. How would he get on?

https://twitter.com/PGATOUR/status/995055201978478592

Arghhh. His ball caught the front lip of the green, and took a massive bounce, which ended wih his ball in the drink. So, after a stunning bogey free round of one eagle and nine birdies, there was a nasty red mark on his card with a double bogey, to bring him crashing back down to earth.

How would he put this blow behind him, with the fearsome 18th still to be faced? Well, he thankfully finished with a par, to card a 63, which but for a terribly unlucky bounce, could so easily have been a 61 or better. Cruel game this golf....

But it was still a magnficient round, and sees him five shots clear of Charl Schwartzel, Patrick Cantley (backed by our golf betting guru Nick Fleming) and Danny Lee. He has also tied the existing course record, so all in all a fantastic day for him at Sawgrass.

Webb Simpson has thrown a hand grenade into this Players Championship, and everything is now set up for a fascinating moving day.

Here's his back nine scorecard.