#PREACH! Augusta National ranked 9th by Golf.Com

[Ronald Montesano]

https://www.golf.com/news/columns/2019/11/21/why-augusta-national-dropped-four-places-ranking/


Love their direct address of the butchering of the course.

[Jeff Schley]

I give them credit for laying out why ANGC has dropped, by not keeping with the original intent of the design and in fact going the opposite way.  Certainly they view the Masters tournament as their only motivation for further changes and is their right, however don't bitch when the unholy public calls them out for it.  I doubt they care and probably had a laugh yesterday when they saw the rankings, only to tighten up guest play even more.

[Tom_Doak]

As I mentioned to John Kavanaugh in his thread, all the narrative on the new rankings - including Ran's take on why Augusta fell to ninth - has nothing more to do with reality than the gibberish spouted daily on CNBC, or political rants on [take your pick] Fox News or MSNBC.


The panel did not get together and "decide" to drop Augusta a few spots after a thorough discussion.  A group of eighty individual panelists rated the course, at least forty of whom were not part of the larger group who rated it last time, and the result shows that their tastes are slightly different.  But, is that because of all the things that Ran wrote?  Who knows?


Augusta's first priority is The Masters, and has been since the 1950's, if not even before that.  The GOLF Magazine ranking is NOT going to change that.  It could, possibly, change their perspective on how to address the golf course, but I wouldn't bet on it.

[Peter Pallotta]

Actually, it makes me feel a little sorry for Augusta.
It's like a Hollywood movie, where the quirky nice girl at a new school is immediately set upon by the rich and popular mean girls, but is so good and nice (and pretty) that by the end she not only has won most of the school over to her side but is also going to the prom with the captain of the football team - the handsome quarterback who (deep down) is a nice guy too. And the mean girls are left on the outside looking in, gnashing their teeth and (we hope) having learned a valuable life lesson.
And the audience applauds the happy ending and everything is right with the world.
Okay, fine -- but what about the mean girls? They're people too, aren't they? They have feelings and hopes and dreams just like the nice girl does. If she and we were truly so 'nice', shouldn't we be having at least a compassionate thought for how badly the mean girls are feeling at the end, instead of just celebrating their downfall?
Sure: Ran M and Geoff S are quirky nice guys, but don't we have any sympathy for the 'mean' (but mostly just misunderstood) rich and popular Tom Fazio? He has feelings too -- and, like the mean girls in the movie, is just trying to find his way through the difficult teenage years in an often harsh and cruel world.
At the very least, I don't think it's right to gloat.

[John Kavanaugh]

Please stop.


https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=preach

[Bill Gayne]

Hopefully all courses were ranked by what's in the ground today and not what may have been there in the past, what could be there, architects intent, or the master being served. If ANGC is the ninth best course in the World using the Golf magazine criteria only considering what's there today than that's what it is. The ANGC commentary didn't give insight as to why it's a top ten golf course. As compared to the Oakmont comments that gave some insight as to the greatness of the course.

[Ira Fishman]

ANGC is not on the top of my wish I could play there lists, but would anyone here who has not played it turn down an invite? Same with any of the courses in the rankings. So why do we care in what order they are listed?


Ira

[Ronald Montesano]

Peter...mean girls have no soul. This is understood, time immemorial. #SoFetch

[Ronald Montesano]

JOHN KAVANAUGH DROPPIN' MAD KNOWLEDGE

Please stop.


https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=preach

[Mike Hendren]

When will the pundits quit evaluating Augusta National through their rear view mirrors? I’ve played 6 of the top 10 and would play Augusta 7 out of 10 rounds head to head with each of them (5/5 against The Old Course only) based upon what’s on the ground there today.


Everyone enjoys a good old-fashioned dog pile though. Pile on boys!

[V. Kmetz]

Who f'n cares what a poll says or thinks? It doesn't change the reality of what it means to any individual player, a spectator, a young designer, a historian or the general public.


Does this mean when it drops to 11th next year, and someday off the list, that it won't be the most well-known course in the world, or any less representative a height in design of when it was made, and yes---through the various iterations of change.  Any less fun to watch a Masters?  Any less desire to have the unique privilege to play it?


I mean for goodness sakes every frickin' April one of the 1200 lunatics who care enough to be on a board like this will regale us with their "First time going to Augusta" thread...and we'll all wish him well, give him advice, and anticipate his follow up thread.  I think the 7th should be restored to a drivable/drive and pitch 4 as much as anybody, it's not killing me to watch the very artifical/Masterized version of that hole which exists today...in fact, for Masters' watching... I like the disfiguring difficulty now imposed on 1, 5, 7, 11, and 18... it's exciting to watch the best tackle these (for me) impossible tasks.



But these lists...they are as stupid as rating the presidents...gee whiz William McKinley dropped from 19th to 26th in the last poll...guess people are now re-thinking the "imperial thing"


ANGC's place in the canon of architecture and continued desirability of study, visits and play is quite secure...