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Editor's note: Three former winners of THE PLAYERS Championship describe how to play THE PLAYERS Stadium Course. Adam Scott (2004) tackles Nos. 1-6, Hal Sutton (2000) handles Nos. 7-12 and defending champion Stephen Ames talks about Nos. 13-18.

Adam Scott

No. 1 (Par 4, 392 yards)

The first hole is more often than not a three-wood. It's pretty tight. You have to feed it down to the wider part of the fairway and leave yourself some kind of wedge or 9-iron into the green. Long and to the right is not a great spot -- you're looking for the center of the green most of the time. The only flag you can really go at is the front left location.

No. 2 (Par 5, 532 yards)

Two is a good hole. If it's playing firm and fast, it's mostly a 3-wood with a draw and some kind of long iron. Going for the green here is the real danger; if you don't hit it, it's quite severe slope-wise, so it can get rather tricky around that green.

No. 3 (Par 3, 177 yards)

Three is a good par three, especially when the pin is placed on that left side up the back. Placed there, the slope cuts in and you'll end up pin high on the right side and have some work to do. Left? That's an absolute no-no.

No. 4 (Par 4, 384 yards)

The tough part of this hole is the drive, It's pretty narrow and the fairway is off center from the tee at an angle. With the bunker on the right, there's no real shot from there because the trees close in on your approach shot. The mounds on the left make for an awkward stance if you hit your ball there. It's one of those famous Stadium Course greens where you can spin it downhill into the hole. The only tricky pin location is the front left where you can bring the water into play.

No. 5 (Par 4, 466 yards)

This is a solid long par four, where there's a premium on hitting your drive into the fairway. Otherwise, it's going to be tough for you to reach the green. With a good drive, you'll have a mid-iron into a generous green. Left is the only place you can't be on that hole.

No. 6 (Par 4, 393 yards)

Six is a great hole, its tight, just a long iron off the tee and a short iron to wedge into the green but you have to be in the middle of the fairway even if you're off a little to the right side in the rough you'll be blocked out by the palm trees. Great short hole.

Hal Sutton

No. 7 (Par 4, 442 yards)

One of the great holes on the golf course. It's usually a driver and anywhere from a 3-iron to a 7-iron depending on the elements and how long you are. I never look at it as a birdie hole, though I have birdied it. Usually, it's into the wind. Your drive needs to be down the left side of the fairway so you can get an optimum shot into the green, but it's got a long waste bunker down the left side and there is water left of that. That waste bunker is real tight sand so the ball could roll into the water if you hit it into the bunker. If you leave it to the right, you've got to go across some trees, across the water and across another waste bunker to a green that is angled away from you. If you drive it left-center, then you've got the best spot and the green is running to your right.

No. 8 (Par 3, 219 yards)

A great little hole. It's anywhere from a 2-iron to a 5-iron based on who's hitting the shot. Wind is usually left to right and a little into your face. It's got a huge pothole bunker to the left-hand side, and if you put it in there and the pin is anywhere on the left side, you're toast. The green is fairly accepting for that long shot. It's just a long, tough par-3 -- very fair, but challenging.

No. 9 (Par 5, 583 yards)

This is an interesting par-5. Early on, we never reached that green in two, now there are a few that can. It's just a driver down the right-center of the fairway. It's not a very demanding tee shot, to be honest, because it's fairly wide. If you happen to pull it in the left rough, that's really a tough shot because you have to clear the water hazard on your next one. The second shot is very demanding in regards to placement. If you get too close to the waste bunker on the left side you are blocked by some trees that guard the left-front of the green. You really need to be right-center in the fairway. The green has some soft tiers to it on the right-hand side. You do not want to be in the bunker left of the green. It's very deep and the putting surface is about eye level and going away from you, which makes it very difficult to get it up and down. All in all, if you get it in the right spot on your second shot, you've got a wedge into the green -- it's a birdie opportunity.

No. 10 (Par 4, 424 yards)

Ten, in my opinion, is one of the best holes on the golf course. I think it's a great driving hole with a waste bunker all the way down the left side and trees and deep rough on the right. You want to hit the ball about 280 off the tee. Sometimes, you don't need a driver to do that, sometimes a 3-wood will get you in the right spot. Then it's a very demanding second shot with bunkering and deep rough to the left and undulations to the right of the green. The green has some undulations and movement to it so you've got to get it the right quadrant. But pay attention to the wind -- it's usually swirling around that green.

No. 11 (Par 5, 535 yards)

You want to be as long as possible off that tee because it's a reachable par-5, but the second shot is very demanding. It's a real risk-reward type of hole. The lay-up on both sides is tough if you have to do that. You want to be down the right-center of the fairway as much as you can so you can get the right angle on the green because it doesn't receive shots very well. If the pin is in the front, that front bunker is not a bad spot to be in. You don't want to miss the green left because you're going to pay a severe penalty. If the pin is in the back, the better lay-up area is to the right. You will have to contend with a big tree there so you need to find the right yardage and avoid the tree.

No. 12 (Par 4, 358 yards)

What a great little hole. I've seen anything from a 2-iron to a driver hit off that tee. If you miss the fairway, the rough is deep and so are the undulations to the left, and then there's a waste bunker and trees to the right. Even in the optimum spot in the fairway, there are places where you won't get a flat lie. The green has got a lot of little tiers in it. It's a birdie hole but you've got to hit all of your shots to make one.

Stephen Ames

No. 13 (Par 3, 181 yards)

Depending on the wind, it's a great par 3. You've got to get your ball on the right level because of the big undulations. This hole usually plays in the vicinity of 6 iron to an 8 iron.

No. 14 (Par 4, 467 yards)

The hole this year is a little bit longer. The tees have been moved a bit further back. Get the ball in play off the tee and your second shot is not as tough as your drive.

No. 15 (Par 4, 449 yards)

You have to be able to keep your drive in play. For big hitters, it's a 3 wood. For me, I hit driver and a 7 iron, 6 iron. And like many of the other holes, you have to get your ball on the right level of the green here to have an easier putt for birdie.

No. 16 (Par 5, 507 yards)

Depending on how long you are, this hole is a dogleg left. It's 3 wood to driver, and you want your shot to be turning over to keep it in the fairway, because if you don't, you're going to run through the fairway on the right and then you'll have to lay up. And the lay-up is not easy -- you want to get it just over the knoll there on the right hand side, but if you hit it too far, the tree on the left hand side will block your third shot. This is a good risk reward hole. If you hit a good shot, you're going to get rewarded. I got lucky and got rewarded by sinking the putt for eagle there when I played it.

No. 17 (Par 3, 137 yards)

What can I say about 17? Get it on land! Once you accomplish that, hopefully you can two putt if you get it on the right level.

No. 18 (Par 4, 447 yards)

You can play 18 so many different ways. You can hit iron off the tee, or driver or 3 wood. With your second shot, the main thing to look out for is the water on the left side -- but also watch the left side of the green, where you'll have three levels to putt over. If you miss it on the right side, you won't have too much of a difficult putt. Those last few holes are the toughest on the golf course.