When the first Augusta Masters Invitational was played in 1934, the course was very different from what we have come to know on television. Augusta National has probably been modified more than any other course over the years; the most famous club in the world spends millions every year to build and modify tees, fairways, greens and bunkers.
The most radical change was made between the first and second Masters. After observing the various dynamics of the tournament, Allister MacKenzie and Bobby Jones, respectively architect and founder of Augusta, decided to reverse the first and second nine holes.
In fact, the famous 18th green, where golf history has been written so many times, was the 9th green during the first Masters. The intuition of reversing the round has made it particularly successful: the back nine of Augusta are in fact the perfect theater for the end of a tournament.
The alternation of difficult holes but with some birdie chances, and easy but insidious holes, ensure that every year the tournament is decided in a spectacular way in the last nine holes, offering thousands of surprises and changes of scene.
Masters, course
One of the other major changes made to the original course, and probably one of Robert Trent Jones Sr.’ s most ingenious ideas, was to rotate the 16th hole nearly ninety degrees. In fact, the famous par 3 was originally played in the same direction as the 15th , and the green was positioned across a stream, much like today at 12.
Trent Jones Sr. instead turns the hole 90º to the right, transforms the stream into a pond and carries it to the left of the new green, completing the famous Masters final sequence. Also for the 2023 edition, the Augusta National Golf Club has made some changes to the course.
Among these, the modifications to the green of the 7 stand out, and the 30-meter retreat of the tee of the 13. The par 5 will be 500 meters long in total, and will finally return to test the second shot of the best players in the world with a long iron or even a piece of wood.
We will certainly see more layups and more balls going into the stream near Byron Nelson Bridge, ensuring an even more spectacular finish.
