“At least it is dry”; “9 under ain’t one of us” – Fans react to Charley Hoffman’s forgettable shank at Cognizant Classic

The 2025 2025 Cognizant Classic, held at the PGA National Champion course in Palm Beach Gardens, features the Bear Trap, which includes holes 15, 16, and 17. During the second round of the event this week, Charley Hoffman encountered a tough situation on the par-3 17th hole, which triggered a mixed reaction from the fans on social media.

The 48-year-old professional golfer was standing at 3-under par for the day when he approached the 17th tee. However, his tee shot turned into a shank that veered out of bounds, prompting the commentator to remark:

"Oh no, oh no... That's a straight shank."

Now, a video clip of this moment was shared by the Fore Play podcast on Saturday. The X post was watched by over 500k viewers within hours, and additionally, it was liked by 1700 users. Fore Play captioned the video as:

"Charley Hoffman. One of us.''

Meanwhile, it's getting mixed responses from the fans who have commented under the post.

"At least it is dry," one X user wrote.

"9 under ain't one of us," a fan wrote in comment.

"That's even worse than just hitting it in the water," one fan wrote.

"No, he's not. He's 9 under par with one shank, we are 19 over par with one shank! I mean I'm not, but y'all prolly are!" a fan wrote.

"Hate the ''he's one of us'' line. The dude does it like once or twice all year. He's not one of us," X user wrote.

Moreover, this misstep turned into a double-bogey five on the 17th. Moving forward, Charley Hoffman hit a birdie on the par-5 18th, finishing his round with a 1-under 69.

Following the performance, Hoffman was placed at 8-under par for the tournament, five strokes behind leader Jake Knapp before the weekend. Moreover, Charley Hoffman is also facing criticism after a memo he wrote to his fellow PGA Tour players earlier this year.

---

Charley Hoffman's memo sparks debate on slow play and players commitment to PGA Tour

Charley Hoffman wrote a memo to PGA Tour players on January 2, 2025. The memo featured concerns about slow play and the choices some players make about non-PGA Tour events. However, Charley Hoffman later clarified in a media appearance on January 4 that he just wanted to raise awareness about slow play. Speaking to the Golf Channel, he said:

"To be completely honest, to bring awareness to it. I’m a fan like everybody else that watches the game of golf, and I just want to bring awareness to a few things that were at the top of my mind, sort of following Justin Thomas’s lead. And sometimes, I wouldn’t say it falls on deaf ears—sometimes the membership thinks it falls on deaf ears—but this was obviously not for the media. I released it to the players, and the media got hold of it. But just the awareness of a few things that were on my mind.”

Additionally, Hoffman's memo talked about players prioritizing outside events, such as TGL and the DP World Tour's Race to Dubai. However, it drew criticism from fellow star golfer Rory McIlroy. The four-time major champion, who is involved in both the PGA Tour and the DP World Tour, took the criticism personally.

McIlroy said that the PGA Tour itself has financial stakes in both TGL and the DP World Tour, pointing out that Charley Hoffman's critique questioned the tour's business strategy. According to McIlroy, playing in those events isn't a betrayal of the PGA Tour but a reflection of its expanding partnerships.