The difference between us mere mortal golfers and tour pros isn’t that they don’t hit bad shots and we do. Pro golfers hit bad shots and end up in trouble, too. It’s what they do from those bad spots that reveal how amateur we really are. Take Anne van Dam’s on the 18th hole during Thursday’s first round of the CME Group Tour Championship.
Playing her ninth hole of the round after starting on the 10th tee, Van Dam’s tee shot didn’t come to rest in a great spot. Though it was ripped— it was estimated to be 310 yards, no surprise for one of the LPGA’s longest hitters—it was tugged left, into a pond with high grasses around its perimeter. Yet instead of taking a drop, van Dam opted to get into the water and see what kind of shot she might have. With the ball above her feet, the 25-year-old from the Netherlands took a rip at it and, well, you can watch the rest.
As you can see watching the video, Van Dam appears to have lost the ball in the sun so she can’t see just how majestic a shot she actually hit. Unfortunately for her, she missed the birdie putt, but you can’t be upset with par from where that drive was. If you’re like us, you saw that lie and saw triple flash before your eyes.
After making the turn in even-par 36, she made two birdies and a bogey on her second nine to post a one-under 71, leaving her tied for 24th place, six shots back of Day 1 leader Lexi Thompson.