The Masters - A Field Report

[BCrosby]

The players:

Watching Tiger Woods hit a golf ball is to glimpse another, counter factual universe. In short, it is unreal. Nothing you have ever seen before prepares you for it.

The fact that he did not win changes none of that.

The course:

I did an informal survey of new trees. There more new trees than reported. Many more.

- There are new "fill-in" trees on virtually every non-par 3 hole. By "fill-in" I mean young trees planted slightly ahead of the old tree lines that will grow in the next decade to either pinch the fairway or create a new tree line to serve as a basis for new, narrower fairway edges.

Little has been said about these trees but they are almost everywhere and will increasingly impact playing corridors over the years. They are the prelude to a much tighter ANGC that will happen without the need for announcing it. If in five years you are scratching your head, wondering what looks different, remember this feeble warning.

- The worst hole at ANGC was always the 7th. Unfortunately, it has become the model for biggest changes on the course. (See discussion below.) Fifteen years ago, mature pines over-hung the fairwy. At 60 or so feet up, they almost met. The hole was impossibly tight, so most played irons or 5 woods off the tee to stay short of the worst of it. Those older pines have been cut back, with younger "fill-in" pines now in front of them. With the new back tees, I thought the hole bordered on the silly. In five years it will be much sillier.

- The new forests at 11 and 17 have turned wide fairways into narrow ribbons. Only the best golfers in the world will be able to find them on a regular basis. I do not understand how a bogey golfer plays those holes. MacK is spinning (or worse) in his grave. In the end, Cliff Roberts won.

Based on what I saw this weekend ANGC's ranking falls precipitously. Maybe as far down as the third ten. On the Michelin system, it goes from a 4 star to a 3 star. More than ever, it is now a mess of styles, strategies, ad hoc solutions and short term thinking. There are more not very good holes.

Based on Hootie's and Fazio's vision of the future, more not very good holes are coming when the trees grow in.

A question for the treehouse:

Can anyone think of another architect whose name is associated with the addition of massive numbers of trees to a top 25 course in the last couple of decades? I can't.

In the end, I left ANGC saddened. Something has died.

Bob
 

[Brad Klein]

Bob,

I've been writing this and saying this for weeks, but ANGC is the only major golf course in the country that's planting trees.

Great post on your part, Bob. Very sad.  

[Evan Fleisher]

Interesting post Bob...thanks for your comments!

I had the great pleasure and opportunity to be at the Masters in both 2000 and 2004, and although I've watched the tournament on TV for years and years seeing the course in person was an incredible experience.

That being said, it was hard to tell how "newly claustrophobic" the course is in the modern era...I felt that the course seemed quite wide and expansive (compared to most other courses)...but then again my perceptions were made on seeing the course only in person in recent times.

It is a shame to hear that the course is making the current list of changes (say in the past 5 years or so) and that it is so drastically altering the nature and design intentions of the course.

What can be done to turn it around?  Seriously?

[Tiger_Bernhardt]

Bob, I agree with you on all points except the drop in Rankings part. I do not think it will go more than a spot or two. I am sick over 11 and 17and the general planting of small trees all over the course to pinch the fairways. This general change in taking away strategy off the tee should also make Bobby Jones fight to come back and slap Hootie and Fazio around. I am fine with making the holes longer just leave the angles alone. they could use their stroke to begin something the USGA struggles with and that is saying no to the manufactors.

[Mike_Sweeney]

Bob,

It would be interesting if NBC in June picked up on the contrast of recent work at Winged Foot and Augusta. WF is pulling out trees, enlarging greens (not that Augusta has shrunk any recently, but my guess is they are smaller from opening day), and now reports from the USGA that the rough is to be "layered" at WF

What seems surprising is I heard a report over the weekend (now confirmed by you) that they planted trees in the woods on some holes at Augusta to make recovery more difficult. Isn't it Agronomy 101 that you need air flow to grow grass?

I would be curious to your thoughts if it is going to be that thick at Augusta where growing grass in some spots could be a problem.

[Dale_McCallon]

BCrosby,

I understand that you are some what of an expert in the evolution of ANGC so I respect your opinions, but do you seriously believe that the club has fallen so much in the eyes of the vast majority of golfers?  If you think the club is in the 3rd ten of courses, fine--but that is so out of line with the majority of golfers.
 
I think the vast, vast majority of golfers couldn't care less if they added island fairways, planted trees on the tee boxes, and made the players swim across Rae's Creek.  Playing there is every golfers dream.  It may shock the educated on this site, but most people would rather play ANGC that even, gasp, Pac Dunes or Sand Hills.

[Glenn Spencer]

Dale,

While I certainly agree that most people would rather play ANGC than Sand Hills. I think that comes from exposure and all the things that have happened there. If the Masters was played at Merion or Sand Hills every year, I think it would be the same at those particular courses. In my mind, this explains to me why the one hole that I would like to play the most in America is the 11th at Merion. Even without years and years of TV exposure, it remains the Holy Grail for me.

[Ron Farris]

BCrosby,
Great post!  
I was wondering - with all the hype of the Sub-Air system and its ability to dictate green speed, etc.- is this system really worth the money to have.  It seemed that the players came out after the rain and were able to stick it due to softer conditions.  

[Brad Klein]

Dale, Bob Crosby's comment about a fall in the ratings was not based upon what the vast majority of golfers think; ratings never are. It was based on what Crosby thinks and on what he believes other thoughtful observers of architecture are likely to think.

[RJ_Daley]

A fine post Bob, thanks.  

I wonder if most of the courses that added trees in the 40s-50s are the model for what ANGC is doing now.  I don't know what Medinah was like in the 30s.  But, I suspect at some point 50 or so years ago, they added a bunch of specimen species "fill-in" trees, like you describe here.  Now, those trees are giagantic and one thinks of them as being there forever.  But, I suspect that many of them were added.  I think that same pattern applies to many old courses that we think have large trees that we assume from our time frame, were always there.  But, they were not.

[TEPaul]

Bob:

Considering how I believe you feel about the total uniqueness in concept of what ANGC was conceived to be I understand how this tree planting and narrowing may make you even sadder. I agree with you that the concept of its design may never have been understood, and obviously it's width was central to it and probably the most misunderstood element of it.

These days when I think of the original ANGC I just can't help thinking it had only 22 bunkers. That fact too is just amazing and probably the next most misunderstood element of it.

To think that such a break-through design in the evolution of golf architecture was not well enough understood for what it was supposed to be really does make one ponder.

[A_Clay_Man]

Also Dale, Just because someone wants to play anywhere, doesn't gaurantee they will enjoy themselves, Golfing.

Bob's comments are how I felt watching the tv show. Remembering how mezmorizing the one cut was,  how different it was from everywhere else made it special. Seeing the added trees, (CBS even did some comparative flyovers) was indeed sad.

It looks like corporate golf America is taking a page from the Japaneese. Forming alliances (families) hoping to expand brand awareness.  This family has made the decision to follow the IMO flawed trend(road) GCA took over the past centruy. The sadness is mostly because it occured on the one course that was specifically designed for the right road (trend).

Pebble Beach falls into this family of naerdowells, gcawise.

[Jim Nugent]

Watching Tiger Woods hit a golf ball is to glimpse another, counter factual universe. In short, it is unreal. Nothing you have ever seen before prepares you for it.

The fact that he did not win changes none of that.  

Bob, can you explain more of what you mean about this?  

[TEPaul]

It is ironic when Brad Klein says ANGC may be the only golf course that is dedicatedly planting trees these day. All these years it was supposed to be so open and wide and it was left to its counterpart in fame, PVGC, to be the great course that was massively over-treed over the years, and perhaps the one responsible for other courses using as an example for treeing up. The other real irony of the evolution of ANGC and PVGC is that while ANGC continues to plant and narrow its course with trees if PVGC continues on its present tree removal program and for the duration they apparently plan, in ten years they may have reduced their total tree number by close to 7,000.

[Andy Doyle]

The sound his swing makes is different from any swing I've ever heard, and the sound from hitting the ball is just astonishing - I've never heard anything like it, not Daly et al.  When Tiger hits the ball it is an act of violence.

Andy

[Mike Benham]

- The new forests at 11 and 17 have turned wide fairways into narrow ribbons. Only the best golfers in the world will be able to find them on a regular basis. I do not understand how a bogey golfer plays those holes.

It has been stated by many that the changes at AGNC were for the professional golfer and did not effect the general membership, except for these 2 holes, and primarily #11.

[Mike Hendren]

I confess to being an Augusta National Golf Club apologist.  

The routing is ingenious and external and internal green contouring amazing.  

I find criticism of its conditioning laughable as it is not uncommon at all to find such conditioning prevalent among America's best courses, by any definition.   As A. G. Crockett has rightfully pointed out, it's easy being green in Georgia this time of year.

There has perhaps been some lost artistry by removing several of MacKenzie's green "tongues,"  but that happened 50 years ago.  Ditto on the bunkering, but substance stills wins out over lost form.  Strategically, the bunkering at Augusta National Golf Club is underrated.  

I don't like the second cut, but it can be eliminated in a couple of hours and does make approach shots slightly more difficult to control when precision is critical to making birdies.

BUT, the narrowing of the playing corridors through tree planting and the fill-in forestation is sad indeed.  To boot, the work appears amateurish on television with the surrounding mulching right out of the landscape plan for a suburban McMansion.  At times I felt I was watching a Big Break Challenge.  

Bob Crosby's point is well taken.  As the planted trees mature, the place will start looking like Sahalee.  

I disagree with Bob's prediction that it will drop in the rankings.  After all, Pine Valley's held up pretty well.

Mike

[Brad Klein]

I asked Hootie about the effect on member play during the Wednesday press conference. The holes are now constricted for members, esp. 11. He ignored me, saying instead that members appear to be content and are free to complain, to which I said "well, maybe once," but that did not appear in the published record.

Not only have members been deprived, but so have spectators. You cannot watch a second shot being played from alongside the fairway anymore because there's a field of 100+ pine toothpicks in your way.

[CHrisB]

Brad,
No disrespect but I find it very difficult to feel sorry for Augusta National members, or Masters spectators for that matter.

[Andy Doyle]

Not only have members been deprived, but so have spectators. You cannot watch a second shot being played from alongside the fairway anymore because there's a field of 100+ pine toothpicks in your way.

For people who have been to the Masters in previous years, did anyone else have the feeling that the gallery ropes were pushed back in other areas as well?  It seemed to me that the spectators where being kept further back in certain areas than I recall in the past, e.g. fairway/landing area of 2, 9, 13, around the 4th green, etc.

Andy

[Dan_Callahan]

Assuming the members of Augusta don't want a winner at -20, was there another option besides length and narrowing?

I'm not saying that I agree with the changes, and quite honestly I could care less about how low the winner can go. But if protecting par and preserving shot value is important to Hootie and the members, what else could they have done?

[John Kavanaugh]

Didn't they make changes in the practice putting green...Is there a chance the participants didn't get properly warmed up for tournament conditions and thus had the poorest putting performance in Masters history.  

[Mike_Young]

Bob,
As a redneck I have always viewed you and Brad K as two of the biggest meanest mental giants I know...so if you agree on this thing...must be something to it...
The scary thing though is how american clubs take their cue from ANGC....we may see a trend of assessing difficult via tree plantings....
Mike

[George Pazin]

Assuming the members of Augusta don't want a winner at -20, was there another option besides length and narrowing?

I'm not saying that I agree with the changes, and quite honestly I could care less about how low the winner can go. But if protecting par and preserving shot value is important to Hootie and the members, what else could they have done?

Let the design defend itself. It did so admirably for a long time, and the greens will continue to do so. Heck, Tiger alone birdies 18 far more often now with the additional length and reduced corridor than he did when he just wailed away and had a half wedge in. The changes show a real lack of understanding of the original design.

To anyone else -

Someone asked how the additional trees will affect agronomy; might they not also indirectly encourage softer conditions? Nothing creates firm and fast like sun and wind, in my limited experience.

[TEPaul]

"Assuming the members of Augusta don't want a winner at -20, was there another option besides length and narrowing?"

Dan:

Of course there is but unfortunately one or a few of those options is dependent on the weather, and trees don't present that problem.

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