In this installment of our audio documentary series, we go back to a time when the PGA Tour operated out of a four-bedroom home in Ponte Vedra Beach. Not far from that home was a flat expanse of swampy jungle. We tell the story of how commissioner Deane Beman and architect Pete Dye turned that land into a new kind of golf venue—and how the pros reacted when they competed on it for the first time. This episode features interviews with Beman, U.S. Open and Players champion Jerry Pate, architect Tom Doak, TPC Sawgrass project manager Vernon Kelly, and journalists Adam Schupak and Sean Martin. It includes music from Assaf Ayalon, Avi Goldfinger, Maya Johanna, Ian Post, and Swirling Ship, and Kevin McLeod.

Sean Martin, “Leap of faith: Behind the Stadium Course’s wild debut at the 1982 Players Championship”

Adam Schupak, Golf’s Driving Force

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