Former NFL kicker scores rarest of shots at TPC Sawgrass

A two on a par-5 hole — an “albatross,” in golf parlance — is the rarest of shots.

Former Jaguars kicker Josh Scobee pulled it off on Monday during a charity tournament at the TPC Sawgrass Players Stadium Course, doing so on a hole where the best professionals in the world over the last 39 years have tried and failed in the Players Championship.

Scobee was playing in a tournament benefitting the Ronald McDonald House, which provides lodging, meals, transportation and other care to critically ill children and their families who need to be near a hospital for treatment.

At the 520-yard par-5 ninth hole of the Stadium Course, Scobee pounded a drive of about 275 yards down the fairway. The tournament was being played under a “Shamble” format, which means the group selects one drive, and each competitor plays their own ball for the rest of the hole.

Scobee’s was the best drive of the group, which included another former Jaguar who now splits time between Jacksonville and a real estate business in Seattle, Bryan Walters, Black Knight executive Brad Basto and Herb Shemer.

Those three hit second shots over the water splitting the ninth fairway, landing in various spots short of the green. But using a 5-wood from 244 yards out, Scobee hit the green, with the ball landing only three feet from the hole and going in on one hop.

Albatross on #9 ⁦@TPCSawgrass⁩ pic.twitter.com/jGIR4vXWDX

— Josh Scobee (@JoshScobee10) October 11, 2021

“From where we could see, the ball took one hop and disappeared,” Scobee said. “I thought it had gone over the green but our caddie [Chris Mullen] had gone ahead and he started screaming, ‘It’s in the hole!’ That was a pretty special moment.”

Scobee used a TaylorMade Sim2 driver and 5-wood, and TaylorMade’s TP5X ball.

As it turned out, Scobee’s team needed that albatross. They eagled No. 11 when Walters pounded a 350-yard drive (winning the long-drive contest, by the way) and Scobee made a 30-foot putt and went on to shoot 16-under 56 to win by one shot.

“It’s crazy that with a two at No. 9 and an eagle at No. 11, we still only won by one,” Scobee said.

For a dose of perspective, the ninth hole is the only one of the four par-5s on the course in which an albatross has not been made during a Players Championship. There has been one at No. 2 (by Peter Lonard in 2007), two at No. 11 (by Hunter Mahan in 2007 and Harris English in 2019) and two at No. 16, by Rafael Cabrera Bello in 2017 and Brooks Kopeka in 2018.

And how rare is a 2 on a par-5? In the history of The Players Championship, there have been 31 holes-in-one at the par-3 holes but only five 2s on the par-5 holes.

The albatross has been another big shot for Scobee as he enjoys his retirement by playing as much golf as possible. He has made two holes-in-one this year, for five total, including the first hole of the Augusta National Par-3 Course, two weeks before the Masters.

Without warming up, Scobee used a pitching wedge to ace that hole.

He also had a hole-in-one in June at a charity tournament he sponsors for the Guardian Catholic School. Under that event’s set-up, there are nine par-3 holes on the course, with five par-4s converted to par-3s. Scobee used a 9-iron from 152 yards at No. 4 for the ace.