Matt Kelly has caddied for best mate Marc Leishman for eight years and having played TPC Sawgrass over 100 times carries a wealth of knowledge heading into this week’s Players Championship. Kelly spoke with the PGA earlier this week to talk about the crucial holes at this week’s championship.

Hole 16:  Par 5 | 523 yards

Every par 5 around TPC Sawgrass is reachable in the right wind, but it’s a very risk/reward hole. It’s a very well designed hole that requires a draw off the tee to hit the fairway. If you’re one shot in front it’s an easy par, as a Caddy, it’s always kind of nice if your leading and they miss the fairway on a par 5 to take that risk out of it.

Hole 17: Par 3 | 137 yards

The most Famous hole at TPC Sawgrass, if not in golf generally.  If you took the water out and put sand around the green it would be on of the easiest holes on tour; unfortunately its not and there is water everywhere. It is, most of the time, no more than an eight iron. Although we did play it last year just before a thunderstorm and it was straight into the wind, I think Marc hit a six iron to a front pin. That becomes a very difficult hole with the tournament on the line; it’s a tough hole.

Hole 18: Par 4 | 462 yards

Another very tough finishing hole, usually just a three wood off the tee for Marc, trees on the right and water all down the left. Very risky driving hole; if its playing down wind you only have an eight or nine iron left, obviously if its into the wind it totally different, five or six iron in. It’s one of the hardest finishing holes we play all year, another small target off the tee, very small target to the green with all the green feeding into the water.

Underrated hole

Hole 14: Par 4 | 481

Such a long par 4 requires a fade off the tee. It has these undulating mounds in the rough that if you hit it in there it’s a wedge out and you’ve got another full wedge to the green. If you do hit the fairway, then you have to draw your second shot around the trees to a skinny green that feeds to the left. It requires two pretty much perfect shots. The only way to play it safe is to play short to the green and then you’ve got a long chip up to a pretty undulating and mounding green. There are no bailouts; there is water on the left off the tee and mounds on the right.