SHEBOYGAN, Wis. -- “Right over there; that’s where it was.”

“Wasn’t it this one?”

“I probably had 30 (people) yesterday and 30 today (ask about it). I'm actually starting to tell people before they ask.”

The sun was shining on most of Whistling Straits on Tuesday afternoon. The most infamous spot on the course, however, remained dark, practically hidden. The bunker on the 18th hole -- where Dustin Johnson grounded his club five years ago, costing himself two strokes and the PGA Championship – is covered up by a large platform of corporate tents.

Actually, the bunkers along the right side of the par-5 finishing hole don’t look the same, either. They have been re-shaped and are more defined now, though by mid-week were already cluttered with fans sunbathing along the shore of Lake Michigan. Two little boys were playing in a couple of the bunkers like they were sandboxes on a playground.

Meanwhile, the curiosity seekers keep coming, pointing to the spot, taking photos.

“Every day,” John Wengle, a caddie at Whistling Straits the last three years, said when asked how often people ask him about bunkergate. “You get a lot of people asking why don’t they throw a plaque up there. Most people remember (the tournament) more for that than the playoff or who won.”

Martin Kaymer did, in case you forgot, too. He beat Bubba Watson in a playoff.

“It’s just a little sad that every time you talk about Whistling Straits, people talk about that he would have won,” Kaymer said Wednesday. “He would have been in the playoff. And it would have been still Bubba, Dustin and me.

“That’s the only thing that a little strange about the whole thing.”

Johnson, who had birdied 16 and 17 to take a one-shot lead into the 72nd hole, bogeyed 18 to drop into a tie for the lead. Or so he thought.

David Price, the PGA rules official walking with the final group that Sunday, heard his radio crackle with someone telling him to not let Johnson sign his scorecard. Price waited for Johnson to putt out, approached him and they disappeared into a trailer.

The video replay told the story. Johnson had violated Rule 13.4 of the Rules of Golf. Penalty: Two strokes. He ended up in a tie for fifth -- two strokes out of the playoff.

“I do remember being in the scoring trailer and I believe there was a television in there and we kind of saw it,” recalls Zach Johnson, who was a couple of groups ahead of Dustin Johnson in the final round in 2010. “It was one of those kind of uh-oh moments.

“Dustin's locker is next to mine, for obvious reasons. I consoled him the best I could. What do you say? He was upset, clearly, as he should be. But his attitude was actually pretty good.

“I remember walking from the locker room to the parking lot next to him. It was a little bit awkward with cameras around us, we were just chatting it up. He wanted to get out of there. And once again, I would, too.”

Ironically, it’s a PGA of America hospitality tent covering the area now. It wasn’t intentional, said PGA of America CEO Pete Bevacqua.

No one will make the same mistake this week. A half-decade later, Johnson’s experience is still fresh in everyone’s mind.

Notices about the bunkers have also been plastered everywhere. Even near the men’s urinals in the clubhouse.

“There was a lot of paperwork last time, but there's a lot more this time,” Watson said. “Everybody has it on their mind, as much as the media is talking about it.”

Everyone except Dustin Johnson. He has moved on – “It is what it is,” he recently said – and he doesn’t seem to be affected by the past.

He’s won six times on the PGA TOUR in the years since (still no majors, though). His ability to bounce back was also evident earlier this season. After three-putting from 15 feet on the 72nd hole to lose the U.S. Open at Chambers Bay, a month later he led through the first 36 holes of The Open Championship at St. Andrews, before fading over the final two rounds.

“I think one of the things that probably goes unnoticed with him is how resilient he really is in major championships and getting over things,” said Zach Johnson. “Obviously we know his talent and we know his game. I am a firm believer that his time will come, whether it's this week or next year, who knows. But he's too good not to be in that winner's circle at some point.”

Added Kaymer: “He will have plenty more chances to win majors – and it would be a very interesting story if he would raise the trophy on Sunday.”

Even if he does, the recollections of what happened in the sand that day at Whistling Straits haven’t vanished easily and won’t anytime soon, even if the bunker has.