Augusta National could easily be called Augusta Hills.
Television doesn’t do justice to the course. The Masters would be much better if it were done in 3-D.
What viewers don’t see on television, golfers and spectators feel in their feet.
The course is so hilly, Jack Nicklaus rode a cart in the Senior Tour’s Tradition the week before last year’s Masters. Nicklaus hates using a cart, but he had to save his legs for Augusta.
The mounds and hills help define Augusta’s personality. It affects how certain shots are approached and the strategy behind them.
Ken Venturi has intimate knowledge of each hill and mound. That comes from spending 47 years as a player and analyst for CBS. The two-time Masters runner-up will be in his familiar perch at the 18th tower for this week’s tournament.
At right is his hole-by-hole assessment of the course.
FRONT NINE
1, TEA OLIVE
PAR: 4, YARDS: 410
2000: 4.295 (2nd hardest hole)
1942-2000: 4.18 (7th hardest hole)
VENTURI’S ANALYSIS: Most guys will use wedges into the green. There are places on this green where you want to hit, and places where you don’t want to hit. You don’t want to be long when the pin is in the back.
2, PINK DOGWOOD
PAR: 5, YARDS: 575
2000: 4.841 (16th)
1942-2000: 4.76 (16th)
VENTURI’S ANALYSIS: If you can’t reach this green in two [it plays downhill], you want to miss to the right if the pin is on the left, and to the left if the pin is on the right. It gives you more green to work with. In 1960, I put it in the bunkers four times, and made three 4s and a 3. Even with the extra distance, big hitters can reach this green in two.
3, FLOWERING PEACH
PAR: 4, YARDS: 350
2000: 4.086 (12th)
1942-2000: 4.08 (14th)
VENTURI’S ANALYSIS: It’s better to be short than long. You’ll want to hug it as much to the right as possible, It gives you more room to work with going into an L-shaped green. If the approach shot isn’t long enough, it’ll roll back off the green. Then you’re looking at a harder shot than the second shot.
4, FLOWERING CRAB APPLE
PAR: 3, YARDS: 205
2000: 3.265 (4th)
1942-2000: 3.26 (3rd)
VENTURI’S ANALYSIS: You have to decide what club you need to get over the bunker. It isn’t easy because of the swirling winds. Playing from an elevated tee, the ball gets over the trees, and the wind could do things with it. You take a 3 here, and go quickly to the next hole.
5, MAGNOLIA
PAR: 4, YARDS: 435
2000: 4.123 (10th)
1942-2000: 4.25 (4th)
VENTURI’S ANALYSIS: It’s a large green, but there’s not much of it you can use for hole locations. So it’s really half the size for the second shot.
6, JUNIPER
PAR: 3, YARDS: 180
2000: 3.185 (8th)
1942-2000: 3.11 (13th)
VENTURI’S ANALYSIS: Another elevated tee. The easiest pin is on the left side. The hardest is on the right, where it is up on a ledge. This is a hole where you can three-putt very easily. Short shots to the right can roll off the green.
7, PAMPAS
PAR: 4, YARDS: 365
2000: 4.036 (14th)
1942-2000: 4.11 (12th)
VENTURI’S ANALYSIS: This is a lay-back hole. You’ve got to be back far enough [100-110 yards] so you can put spin on the ball. I’ve seen players spin the ball back into the bunker. You’ve got to play up-golf on this hole. Hit it high and land soft.
8, YELLOW JASMINE
PAR: 5, YARDS: 550
2000: 4.795 (17th)
1942-2000: 4.80 (15th)
VENTURI’S ANALYSIS: This hole is reachable in two for long hitters who can drive the ball past the fairway bunker. They reach the green with an iron. If you miss it left on the second shot, you’re in trouble. Tiger Woods in 1997 made a recovery from there to make a 4. Nobody makes 4 from there.
9, CAROLINA CHERRY
PAR: 4, YARDS: 430
2000: 4.152 (9th)
1942-2000: 4.11 (11th)
VENTURI’S ANALYSIS: This always has been a hard hole. It doesn’t fit the eye. It is a dogleg left, but the hole slopes to the right. People on TV can’t see the elevation into the green. You have to hit a soft arm shot that doesn’t spin. If you’re short, the ball could roll back 50 yards to the crosswalk.
BACK NINE
10, CAMELLIA
PAR: 4, YARDS: 485
2000: 4.285 (3rd)
1942-2000: 4.29 (1st)
VENTURI’S ANALYSIS: This hole plays downhill, so if you hit the slope right, you can pick up 50 yards. To me, you just try to hit the middle of the green with the approach, and let me get out. It’s a sloping green with the bunker to the right. It’s a good hole to make par.
11, WHITE DOGWOOD
PAR: 4, YARDS: 455
2000: 4.381 (1st)
1942-2000: 4.23 (5th)
VENTURI’S ANALYSIS: At all costs, don’t go in the water. Ben Hogan used to say if he hit his approach to the middle of the green, he hit a big pull. You want to be right of the hole. Anything left of the hole is a missed shot. This is a hole where you can get a double really quick.
12, GOLDEN BELL
PAR: 3, YARDS: 155
2000: 3.255 (5th)
1942-2000: 3.26 (2nd)
VENTURI’S ANALYSIS: I had good success on this hole. I took whatever I needed to clear the middle of the bunker. The only time you go after the pin on this hole is if you’re three shots back in the final round. You can’t win the Masters at 12, but you can lose it at 12.
13, AZALEA
PAR: 5, YARDS: 485
2000: 4.791 (18th)
1942-2000: 4.74 (17th)
VENTURI’S ANALYSIS: This is a birdie hole. If you walk away with a 5, you feel like you’ve lost a shot. They grew a second cut, which makes the ball come out hotter and faster. But the players still are hitting irons out of it. Where you hit your tee shot determines your second shot.
14, CHINESE FIR
PAR: 4, YARDS: 405
2000: 4.050 (13th)
1942-2000: 4.16 (8th)
VENTURI’S ANALYSIS: This is another hole that’s a hard fit for the eye. It’s a dogleg left that slopes to the right. It’s a hard hole to play if you can’t hit a draw. You want to be on the right side no matter what side the hole is on. Anything left will give you a hanging lie, making it hard to get to the hole.
15, FIRETHORN
PAR: 5, YARDS: 500
2000: 4.894 (15th)
1942-2000: 4.73 (18th)
Venturi’s comment: There’s room to roam here. The long hitters have a great advantage. If you lay up, you don’t want to be too close to the water. You want to leave yourself about 100 yards in.
16, REDBUD
PAR: 3, YARDS: 170
2000: 3.123 (11th)
1942-2000: 3.13 (9th)
VENTURI’S ANALYSIS: The most difficult pin is back right. The easiest is middle left. This is a hole made for a preset shot. It’s not a difficult hole if you can visualize the right-shaped shot. You just have to trust the shot.
17, NANDINA
PAR: 4, YARDS: 425
2000: 4.222 (6th)
1942-2000: 4.12 (10th)
VENTURI’S ANALYSIS: They hit wedges into this hole and back it up. With a back right pin, anything left of the hole is a very difficult putt.
18, HOLLY
PAR: 4, YARDS: 405
2000: 4.222 (7th)
1942-2000: 4.19 (6th)
VENTURI’S ANALYSIS: First and foremost, you want to take the bunkers out of play off the tee. If you get in the sand, you’re so deep in there, you can barely see the top of the flag. The easiest pin is the Sunday pin. It’s left and everything feeds back to it. It’s a very good birdie hole on Sunday.
