What Would a Ten Handicap Shoot at Augusta Today?

[Brent Hutto]

100+.
No chance at breaking 100.
A 10 wouldn't hit the greens in reg and have basically NO chance of getting up and down.
It would be a blood bath.

I'd say the problem is he would basically have NO chance of getting down in three from a bunker or short of most greens and getting down in four from over the green would probably mean sinking a five-footer.

[JESII]

Shivas,

With that kind of performance, why don't you play out the 15th hole for us?

[Tim Nugent]

Shivas said this "Let me put it another, simpler way - I'll bet he takes at least 65-70 strokes from inside 40 yards. "

Shivas,

You're probably not too far off.

The posters that talk about a 10 breaking 100 need to remember that a 10 hdcp's short game is not good.   Not only is it not good, but put under the details of what this thread is calling for, like I previously stated, a 10 hdcp's short game will be humiliated.

I mean no ill intent, it's just an undeniable fact.

I'm a bit more than a 10 but do have a pretty good short game - everything else has deserted me.  But, having played some Open courses where they slicked them up (knowing a bunch of architects were playing that day - either to impress, punish or embarrass - or all three, which is usually the outcome) I would be happy somewhere around 110.  Remember, these are the best of the best and with very few penalty strokes.  Most of the par 4's would play like a par 5's and there is no way we could stop it like that on those greens - so I'm thinking Double bogey ave plus a couple penalties and whala - 110+

[Chip Gaskins]

I am about a 6-7 handicap.

I played from the members tees around 6500 yards.

I doubt I could finish from the Masters tees at 7400 yards. 

I shot 87 with 4 three putts.

Add at least 10 more shots for the extra 1000 yards for Masters tees.

[David Whitmer]

I'll let you know tomorrow, because my friend, the golf writer for the Chicago Tribune, won a spot in the media lottery to play today.  I think he's a 13 and I bet he'll shoot 105 from the members' tees.

I can also report tomorrow. My brother is the golf writer for The Boston Globe, and he also won a spot in the lottery. He teed off at 11:30 this morning. He's a 6 handicap.

[Bob_Huntley]

100+.
No chance at breaking 100.
A 10 wouldn't hit the greens in reg and have basically NO chance of getting up and down.
It would be a blood bath.

100+.
No chance at breaking 100.
A 10 wouldn't hit the greens in reg and have basically NO chance of getting up and down.
It would be a blood bath.

Ted,

I agree, go to the the men who missed the cut and then go down to the last fifteen on that list and look at the scores. Is there anyone on this board that thinks they are better than Jim Furyk, Henrick Stenson, Craig Stadler, Vj Singh and Rory Sabattini?

I think 100 would be the low score.


Bob

[Sean Leary]

Is this a media tournament?  Or is it just a fun day of golf?

Do they HAVE TO play by the rules and putt 'em all out? 

Or are guys going to be lifting downhill left-to-right, two-foot sliders with the back flange of their Ping Ansers??

I'd peg the percentage of golf writers who will play 18 holes under the Rules at 5 percent or less unless there's some sort of tournament than matters to them going on....

I agree. Putting them ALL out makes a huge difference as the 2 footers are scary.

The other part oif this is whether the 10 handicapper intentionally plays for bogey  most holes rather than trying to make pars and birdies. Might be able to shave a few strokes off that way, but that would be no fun..

[Steve Strasheim]

It seems that both Michael Campbell and Ian Woosnam finished at +20 after two rounds.

A normal course 10 handicap player would likely be triple that.

100+

[Bruce Katona]

7,400 yards is too far for me so most of the long par 4's are par 5, which would add several strokes to the score.

I would like to try playing from the average professionals drive in (the shamble technique, so to speak) and hope to break 90 with some time to practice the short game.

With the greens running the speed they are today, and having to play all my off line drives from the members tees I would be happy to break 100 my 1st time around and maybe 90 my second as I would know the place a little better.

As comparison, on my only visit to PV; from the members tees, I did post a 95 and treasure the scorecard to this day. 

[Adrian_Stiff]

I think nett 90 is more like the mark for most.... so a 10 handicapper may just about break the ton. With those fast greens and sick run offs I think you would have instances of taking 5 or 6 shots from just off the green a couple of times. I would say 45 putts might equal the normal 32. I think a 10 capper might make 2 pars, maybe hit 5 greens in reg.

[Jason Topp]

Does AGNC have a rating/slope? I don't think so. I know they have their own handicapping system for members.

Dean Knuth, who invented the system, has rerated it and cam up with 78.1 course rating and a slope of 137. http://www.golfdigest.com/golf-tours-news/golf-masters/2010-04/how-tough-augusta-knuth

Interesting that he pegs the predicted average score for a 10 handicap to be 91.  That seems way too low.

[Jerry Kluger]

Jason: I agree with you. A 10 handicap uses his best 10 out of 20 scores with most at a course he is familiar with and which probably has a rating around 71.0 and a slope of 125.  I do think that the second time around would see a much lower score but from the tips my guess would be that the 10 handicapper at those green speeds would be lucky to break 100.  The only thing preventing an even higher score is the lack of deep rough.

[Phil McDade]

I'd peg the percentage of golf writers who will play 18 holes under the Rules at 5 percent or less unless there's some sort of tournament than matters to them going on....

Shivas -- if you're doing an over/under on that 5 percent, I'm taking the under and running to the bank. NO one cheats at golf more than journalists....

[Jim Nugent]

I'd peg the percentage of golf writers who will play 18 holes under the Rules at 5 percent or less unless there's some sort of tournament than matters to them going on....

Shivas -- if you're doing an over/under on that 5 percent, I'm taking the under and running to the bank. NO one cheats at golf more than journalists....

Presidents?...

[Phil McDade]

I'd peg the percentage of golf writers who will play 18 holes under the Rules at 5 percent or less unless there's some sort of tournament than matters to them going on....

Shivas -- if you're doing an over/under on that 5 percent, I'm taking the under and running to the bank. NO one cheats at golf more than journalists....

Presidents?...

Jim -- Too small a sample size.

[Andrew Summerell]

Does AGNC have a rating/slope? I don't think so. I know they have their own handicapping system for members.

I would assume most members at Augusta National are members eslewhere, thereby having two handicaps. (Which is not legal in Australia, but may not be an issue in America under the Slope system)

I would be interested to know what their handicaps are at their other course(s), being that if they want a USGA handicap, one of their other courses would have to be their (USGA) home course.

[David Whitmer]

As I said in an earlier post, my brother played there today. He's a 6 handicap.

He shot 84, playing from the members' tees. He began on #1, and was even after five holes (he birdied #3), but played poorly the remaining four holes, and he turned in 41. Then on the back, he was one over for the nine standing on the 16th hole. He dunked his tee ball and made a six, then hit the Eisenhower Tree on #17 and made a double, then missed a two-foot putt to bogey #18. Yes, he played the last three holes in six over. At least you can count one journalist as having putted out all his two-footers!

[Matthew Petersen]

I play to a 3 handicap and playing under tournament conditions I would honestly be thrilled to break 100.

Not sure how I would handle the distance, as I don't think I've ever played a course that long not at altitude. The closest would probably be Southern Dunes from the tips and I remember both times doing that just being so tired of hitting long irons into par 4s at the end of the day.

Plus, as someone else stated, I'd be going for everything if I had even the slightest chance. Why potentially make a safe par or bogey on 13 by laying up. No, I'd be much happier remembering making an 8 knowing that it was my stupid determination to hit a three wood for my second shot that caused it!

[Matthew Petersen]

As I said in an earlier post, my brother played there today. He's a 6 handicap.

He shot 84, playing from the members' tees. He began on #1, and was even after five holes (he birdied #3), but played poorly the remaining four holes, and he turned in 41. Then on the back, he was one over for the nine standing on the 16th hole. He dunked his tee ball and made a six, then hit the Eisenhower Tree on #17 and made a double, then missed a two-foot putt to bogey #18. Yes, he played the last three holes in six over. At least you can count one journalist as having putted out all his two-footers!

what distance do the member tees play to?

[David Whitmer]

what distance do the member tees play to?

He said it played a little more than 6,400 yards.

[Kyle Harris]

Shivas,

With that kind of performance, why don't you play out the 15th hole for us?

Jim,

I keep thinking to myself that very few of these holes can be that much more difficult than any on the C-Nine.

[Dan Herrmann]

IMHO, a 10 GHIN index would probably shoot at least 125.

[John Moore II]

Just to go with the original question, I think a 10 handicap would shoot at least 120 at ANGC today. Courses like that are stupid hard. I had a scratch handicap a few years back, but on an easier course. I tried to qualify for the US Am on a course that was 7200 yards, with greens rolling 13 and rock hard. I shot 85 and was damn pleased. A 10 handicap with a even slightly spotty putter would shoot insanely high at ANGC, unless they tried to bunt the ball around or something.

[Ben Sims]

I haven't heard anyone talk about the tee shot being the dooming factor.  Being on GCA.com, many of us have played diabolical green complexes with undulation and speed and have lived to at least tell about it.  But Augusta is one of the tightest driving courses I've ever seen.  18 is impossible.  11 is impossible.  Sounds weird to say, but 13 is impossible if you can't turn the ball over.  

I remember seeing most of the 18 holes when I went to a practice round a few years ago and thinking how straight AND far you had to hit it just to get it past the chutes reasonably far away from the teeing area.  A 10 'capper is hitting what, 7 fairways a round at the local course?  Imagine the 10 handicapper in some of the places Tiger and Phil found themselves yesterday.  

There is NO up and down for us mid-cappers where Tiger was on the 11th yesterday.

[Sean Leary]

I haven't heard anyone talk about the tee shot being the dooming factor.  Being on GCA.com, many of us have played diabolical green complexes with undulation and speed and have lived to at least tell about it.  But Augusta is one of the tightest driving courses I've ever seen.  18 is impossible.  11 is impossible.  Sounds weird to say, but 13 is impossible if you can't turn the ball over.  

I remember seeing most of the 18 holes when I went to a practice round a few years ago and thinking how straight AND far you had to hit it just to get it past the chutes reasonably far away from the teeing area.  A 10 'capper is hitting what, 7 fairways a round at the local course?  Imagine the 10 handicapper in some of the places Tiger and Phil found themselves yesterday.  

There is NO up and down for us mid-cappers where Tiger was on the 11th yesterday.

Augusta is one of the tightest driving courses you have ever seen? Thats just plain silly. Its WIDE open with the exception of a couple of holes. And those holes look much narrower on TV than they really are. And from the member tees, where the mid cappers play, it is much more open on those holes still.

I was really surprised when I was there how big the "chute" is on 18. It looks WAY tighter than it is, and from the members tees, its really wide open.