Golfers Now Face A Vastly Different Augusta National for This Year's Masters

If Bobby Jones were to show up at Augusta National today, there is no doubt that his warm, friendly persona would quickly turn to rage when he saw what had been done to his masterpiece of a golf course.

Plain and simple, the recent modifications to Augusta National have completely distorted the vision that Bobby Jones and Clifford Roberts had when they first created Augusta National back in 1933.

Jones’ original vision for Augusta National was based on a course that played the role of leading character more than any other during his storybook career– St. Andrews. 

When Augusta National first opened its doors in 1933, it was exactly what Jones had envisioned.

The course layout was very open.  There were not too many trees, the fairways were large, and the bunkers were scarce yet very deep.

The course was made difficult by sprawling hills, sharp doglegs, greens surrounded by lakes and creeks as well as the wind that inevitably swirls around Augusta, Georgia every spring.

It was, in essence, the American parkland version of St. Andrews – exactly how Jones had pictured it in his mind.

Unfortunately, over the past decade, very few, if any, of the world’s classic golf courses have been changed as often or as significantly as Augusta National.

In the past six years alone, the course has been adjusted three times and lengthened from 6,925 yards to 7,445 yards.

The days of Arnie mounting one of his trademark Sunday afternoon charges at Augusta are over.

The days Jack Nicklaus shooting a six-under-par 30 on the back nine to come from behind to win the 1986 Masters, while providing arguably the most exciting two hours of golf ever seen, are no more. 

Now a day, the only excitement you will see on Sunday is watching whether or not the leader is able to hold on for dear life and avoid making too many bogeys. 

Advances to equipment combined with weight training becoming more and more prevalent in the game have drastically increased the distances the golf ball now travels.  

So, it’s easy to see the logic behind lengthening the course after Tiger Woods was consistently getting home on par-fives with a driver and a nine iron in the 1997 Masters.

That’s downright embarrassing and I’m sure that Jones himself would not have stood for it.

In this day and age, there is clearly a need to modify courses in order to remain competitive in the face of the drastic improvements to the equipment being used.

However, there is a fine line between modifying a course to keep up with the changing times, and going too far as to completely eliminate one of the most exciting features of tournament golf – the Sunday afternoon charge.

Augusta National seems to have crossed that line.

Sure, a major championship should test a player’s nerve and skill under the most difficult course conditions. 

But it should also still allow for a contender who plays an outstanding round on Sunday to have enough legitimate birdie opportunities to mount a charge on the leader; which is precisely what has been all but eliminated at Augusta National.

Ten years ago, the leader could not sit by idly knowing that as long as he didn’t make too many bogeys, he would probably win the event.  Ten years ago, the leader on Sunday had to keep the pedal to the metal because he knew that there was a very good possibility someone behind him would catch fire and string together a bunch of birdies.

Two years ago, Zach Johnson managed to win the Masters with a strategy of laying up on every single par-five. 

Johnson does not hit the ball particularly long, and with tough, windy conditions that year his strategy proved to be the right one.

However, in 2007 Johnson tied for the highest 72-hole winning score in Master’s history and despite laying up and settling for par on most par-fives, no other player in contention was able to mount any kind of a charge.

What used to make the Masters just a little more exciting than any of the other majors was the ever present possibility of a player coming out of nowhere, shooting a 32 on the back-nine and somehow managing to go home with a green jacket.

That scenario unfortunately seems to be all but extinct at Augusta National for the time being.

It’s funny how Augusta National Golf Club keeps hold of some outdated traditions such as not allowing woman members while having just a couple African American members, yet they are quick on the draw when it comes to drastically changing the course and all but eliminating the vision that Bobby Jones himself originally had for Augusta National.