AUGUSTA, GA. When Augusta National Golf Club is discussed, the bulk of the attention invariably centers on the higher profile inward nine. It’s easy to see why given the bulk of time shown on all telecasts through the years.

The trio of holes (11-13) that makes-up “Amen Corner” have been indelibly seared into the collective memory banks of competitors and those observing the tournament action.

When Augusta National staged the first Masters in 1934 the nines we see today were reversed.

Bob Jones opted to flip them because of weather issues tied to lingering frost on cold spring mornings.

When Jones selected architect Alister MacKenzie the two men wanted to create an inland parkland layout reminiscent of the Old Course at St. Andrews.

Located in the far corner of the property the hole was not a main gathering place for galleries as many would often bypass it and head elsewhere given its isolation.

The 5th is named “Magnolia.” All of the holes at Augusta National are named for various flowers given the pedigree of the property as a nursery prior to when the course was created.

The hole moves uphill and turns left in the drive zone.

The original design did have a fairway bunker on the left side but it was easily played over by the players.

In 1937, Perry Maxwell re-contoured the green to ocean-wave contours. A 1949 plan shows two small fairway bunkers in place of the big one. Sometime after the 1956 Masters, architect George Cobb added a bunker back left of the green.

With the benefit of club and ball technology, many players opted to avoid hitting driver and using a 3-metal club off the tee in order to assure proper placement.

Players were able take advantage of a fairly wide open landing area and that remained the case until 2011.

In 2011, renowned architect Tom Fazio moved the massive fairway bunkers roughly 80-yards downrange. This served to increase the carry distance needed to avoid the bunkers. A carry of 315 yards was now needed. The two bunkers were also angled close in and this effectively narrowed the landing area immediately to the right of them.

But even more “improvement” was to happen just eight years later in 2019. For a number of years, Augusta National had been purchasing various properties around the club’s perimeter. A section of Old Berchmans Road was re-directed and is now under ownership of the club. This permitted the club to extend the hole 40 yards to its present length of 495 yards.

As part of this overhaul, the fairway bunkers were also moved back approximately 40 yards toward the tee and still required the same amount of carry distance to avoid them. The bunkers were also deepened so any ball that finds itself there has a far more challenging situation from which to escape.

Stroke average for the 5th at the 2025 Masters was 4.55 — making it the most difficult of all 18 holes. Historically, the all-time stroke average is 4.27 strokes. Making it the fifth-toughest hole on the golf course during Masters Tournament play.

Every Hole at Augusta National – No. 5 (Magnolia)

“Magnolia” is like Paul Thomas Anderson’s film of the same name: brilliant, probably underrated, but a tad bloated. Nonetheless, the hole presents an honest challenge, and the green is one of the most artfully shaped at Augusta… pic.twitter.com/0TewvHzhHO

— Fried Egg Golf (@fried_egg_golf) April 2, 2026

Even with proper positioning off the tee, the approach is one of the most rigorous faced during the round. The green has a frontal area that rises noticeably. Players must carry their approach beyond this in order to have a more straightforward attempt at birdie.

Tiger Woods explained his philosophy on what’s needed when attempting to hit the elusive target.

“My years of experience playing the hole and picking the brains of other past champions who have had success all come down to the same thing. Carry that crest that’s about 12 to 13 yards into the green — put the ball in the center — make your par and move on.”

Sounds simple — right?

Hardly so.

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