HOLE 4 – FLOWERING CRAB APPLE
PAR 3 – 240 YARDS
The hole is longer now and they’re hitting small woods sometimes.
It’s a very severe green with a big ridge. It’s hard to stop the ball on the correct tier. It’s very fast from the right to the left and it never breaks as much as you think to the back left pin.
This hole has been lengthened over the years and you’re always delighted to get away with a three here. From the back tee you’ll need a strong iron, maybe even a wood. If you misjudge the wind the ball can easily hold up and drop short into the big bunkers leaving you with a lot of work to do to get up and down for par. Many steady starts have come unstuck at the fourth.
HOLE 5 – MAGNOLIA
PAR 4 – 455 YARDS
It’s been lengthened and there are now two big bunkers on the left. If it’s downwind you’ll see guys hit 3-wood because it does narrow in.
You’ll be looking to hit it 280 to 300 yards leaving a 7 or 8-iron. Miss the green right and it’s a tortuous chip. It’s one of those holes where you can pitch a foot short of where you want to be and it’s in the lap of the gods.
There’s no easy miss here. Middle of the green to any flag is the best place. If I can get the boss in the middle, it’s an uphill putt.
There are a lot of big trees and the wind really swirls round so judging distance is often the key. The bunkers on the left were extended about 80 yards towards the green in 2003, forcing many players to play right and leave a longer shot to the green. The front-to-back sloped green means the back bunker should be avoided”
HOLE 6 – JUNIPER
PAR 3 – 180 YARDS
A mid-iron off the tee, it plays eight to 10 yards downhill.
Easiest pins are on the left, but they also place two flags in the week on the plateau to the right which is virtually a green within a green. You need to be so precise or you’re facing a very tough two-putt.
The large and undulating two-tier green, protected at the front by a large bunker means you have to be extremely accurate off the tee. Find the right part of the putting surface and control your spin to keep it close to the pin or you’ll be seriously struggling to escape with a par.”
HOLE 7 – PAMPAS
PAR 4 – 450 YARDS
Always used to be a 2-iron and a sand wedge, now it’s a driver and a 7-iron.
The green is designed for a wedge because it’s 12 yards deep on the right and 18 deep in the middle. The last place you want to be is the back right bunker. The front right bunkers are not too bad.
Swirling wind always seems to affect this hole, making it a tough green to hit. You’ve only got four or five yards to land a 7-iron. There are half a dozen holes where a caddie crosses his fingers when the ball’s in the air.”
This hole was a lot shorter with a narrow tee shot and narrow green. It was designed to take a pitch but now they’ve lengthened it I think the elvated green is too narrow for the mid-iron you’re playing to it. The heavily bunkered green calls for very accurate ironplay and players can no longer consider this one of the simpler chances for birdie.”
HOLE 8 – YELLOW JASMINE
PAR 5 – 570 YARDS
Again, it’s now very hard to carry the fairway bunker, so you’re going to need two very good hits to get up there.
The second shot is about 20 yards uphill. Front right is a good miss, but left leaves a difficult chip because the slopes are severe on that side. Back left flags are birdie chances if you can get over the hog’s back in the middle of the green.
That’s Augusta. Those are the fine margins. It’s torture at times, but it’s the ultimate challenge and the top players often come out on top.
It just sort of wanders up the hill and they keep making the bunker bigger, although the fairway is still 40 or 50 yards wide. You don’t really know where you’re playing your second shot and with all the humps you can rely somewhat on luck – play an absolutely awful shot that gets the right bounce and it suddenly becomes very good.”
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