In reviewing the 18 holes at Augusta National it’s important to remember a crucial decision was wisely implemented following the inaugural event.<\/p>\n

The nines were reversed in 1935 and the timing of that decision set the stage for one of the greatest shots not only in Masters history but all of major championship golf.<\/p>\n

Gene Sarazen holed his 2nd\u00a0shot for a double-eagle at the par-5 15th propelling him to victory and thus becoming the charter member of the modern Grand Slam club.<\/p>\n

Co-founder Bob Jones and architect Alister MacKenzie each shared a profound love for the Old Course at St Andrews. Augusta National’s guiding philosophy was to create an inland version set on the rolling Georgia landscape by embodying the many intricacies and challenges found with that great links in Scotland.<\/p>\n

Both Jones and MacKenzie favored wide fairways thereby accommodating varied skill levels able then to navigate alternative ways around the golf course. Augusta National has more than 80 acres of fairway which is nearly double that of most golf facilities. The club also eschewed the heavy-handed insertion of penal high grass around the perimeter used by other notable clubs as a deterrent to wayward play.<\/p>\n

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“Augusta National provides shots which the greatest of all golfers has the utmost difficulty in carrying out successfully, and yet it has only twenty-two bunkers, no rough, and is a paradise for the average golfer.” – Alister MacKenzie\u00a0<\/em><\/strong><\/h6>\n

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Strategic thinking would be rewarded rather than a traditional embrace of penal architecture where even the slightest of errors are penalized rigorously.<\/p>\n

Augusta National’s prime defense comes with the complexity of the putting surfaces. Jones and MacKenzie were both enamored with the green complexes at The Old Course.<\/p>\n

Although Augusta National does not have the overall size of famed double greens found across the pond, the average square footage of 6,435 can be maddening for players unable to skilfully position approach play throughout the round.<\/p>\n

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