Strong First Round Finds Prugh 21st at THE PLAYERS Championship

PONTE VERDA BEACH, Fla. -- Alex Prugh shot a first round 3-under-par 69 in THE PLAYERS Championship on Thursday, an event long considered the fifth major on the PGA Tour. For much of the morning, Prugh led the field at 5-under, but a double-bogey on his 16th hole (No. 7) brought him back to where he ended his round at the famed TPC at Sawgrass.

Prugh teed off from No. 10 and was -4 as he made the turn. He went to -5 after birdieing No. 2. He was in good shape until his tee shot on No. 7 found the water.

TPC at Sawgrass is infamous for its Par-3 No. 17, a signature hole that is surrounded by water. Prugh was able to birdie the hole and explained to PGATour.com the secret to his success.

"It's an easy hole," Prugh said with a laugh to the Tour's official website. "I ended up pulling a 9-iron, just a nice little chip 9-iron with wind hurting it a little, and you have a backstop there on that front pin. I hit it how I wanted to and it ended up just being pin high, however many feet to the right."

"You kind of get a feel for it in Tiger Woods," said Prugh. "Some breaks, some places not to be. If you have a tough up-and-down on that game, you know not to be there in real life because it's even that much worse."