The ‘Bear Trap’ from holes No. 15 to No. 17 at PGA National (Champion) has played as the fourth toughest three-hole stretch on the PGA TOUR since 2007. Watch some of the best golfers in the world take on the challenge and ultimately fall short in this all-time “golf is hard” compilation. - PGA TOUR
Last year's Honda Classic looks to have been "the toughest PGA Tour event in 24 years", - from this 2020 article by Christopher Powers. "According to this wild stat shared [on] the PGA Tour Communications' Twitter account, the 2020 Honda was the toughest non-major event in nearly a quarter century" - Linked to this Tweet, which reads:
"Since 1996, this week’s @TheHondaClassic marked the first non-major on the @PGATOUR without any player posting a score of 5-under or better in a round."
However some question whether the Bear Trap, specifically, is overrated in regards to its treacherous capability. Ryan Herrington wonders, "Just how treacherous is the Bear Trap?"
He asks, "Has the legend of the Bear Trap been overdone? Is the roar bigger than the bite?"
And, he suggests, "Probably." He finishes with this:
In summary, the Honda Classic often should be won or lost at the Bear Trap, just as Nicklaus professed. That’s primarily because they are three of the final holes of the tournament, and inherently those holes will play a key role at the end most years. But statistically speaking, we don’t count on the Bear Trap being a deciding factor each and every year.
Derek Duncan takes it further. He writes, "Forget about the Bear Trap: Here's why pros fear PGA National's 11th hole."
"The Champion course at PGA National is best known for the collection of holes 15, 16 and 17, known as “The Bear Trap.” Huge numbers can be run up through this stretch, but as a group they have little on the 11th. Since 2016 the hole has notched 123 double bogeys and 31 “others” (compared to 178 double bogeys and 26 “others” at the par 3 15th), including an average of nine balls per round sent into the drink (again, second only to 15)."
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