Sergio Garcia, the 28 year-old Spaniard jumped out to a two stroke lead in Ponte Vedra Beach Florida on Thursday at the Stadium Course at TPC Sawgrass.

Garcia had an early tee time and was able to capitalize on a combination of receptive greens, more accessible pin positions, and no wind. Sergio has done very well at The Players Championship; having shot 17 under par through his last three rounds going back to last year. This is definitely one of my favorite courses, so it’s always nice to go back to a place where you’ve done well and you feel comfortable," said Garcia. "You know, I’m just looking forward to keep doing the same things, keep hitting the ball well, keep chipping well and keep putting well and then hopefully by the end of the week, we’ll be where we are supposed to be."

Thursday was a return to previous forms of sorts as who else is in second but Kenny Perry. Perry as you remember went on the best streak of his career between 2003 and 2005. With five birdies and one bogey, everything was clicking for Perry. "I’m just now starting to come back and get sharp again. I think I hit 16 greens today and I think I only missed one fairway and that was on the last hole, I can’t remember — oh, and 11. So I missed two fairways. All in all, I had, you know, great opportunity to be aggressive out there and get after those flags a little bit."

Everyone wants to know, how did everyone do at the 17th? As one of the most famous holes in golf, the island green at 17 is not that difficult a shot. Somewhere between a wedge and a nine, but enough pressure and expectation to make it trouble. Out of the first thirty groups to play, just seven balls found the drink. As the day grew later, the wind grew stronger. The final eighteen groups plopped thirteen balls in the pond.

Phil Mickelson, defending champion, gives great insight into what goes through a player’s mind while on the tee. "Well, the wind was changing a little bit there, and when I first got there it was into the wind. When I was getting ready to hit, it started to just be crosswind, and then I started getting some help. So I was thinking I was going to have to step on a 9-iron. And then I ended up taking a little bit off of a wedge.
I got lucky it ended up close. That close, I’m not trying to do anything more than trying to make a 3, and it ended up four feet. That was just kind of a — I don’t want to say fluke, but it went six, seven yards farther than I was trying to hit it."

There is certain to be drama as each group plays the back nine and especially the 17th. Sergio Garcia is hoping to be the second player in as many years to win the tourney wire to wire, and be the first Euro to win since Sandy Lyle in 1987. It may just be the swirling winds of 17 to decide the fate of the champ.