The legendary hole has changed a lot over the years — here's Jimmy Demaret on a T-shirt in 1947. Photo: Getty Images Arnold Palmer and Byron Nelson watch Don Cherry drive in 1962. Images
Part five at the end of Amen Corner has had a few changes, mostly due to length. It was never the case that green jackets studded Mona Lisa's nose, but she made regular visits to the salon to have extensions fitted.
Yet despite it all — a remodeled green in 1975, 25 extra yards in 2002 — the Azalea, to use its official moniker, has managed to maintain its reputation as possibly the biggest hole in the risk-reward game. Masters founder Bobby Jones probably summed up his split personality best in 1959. “In my opinion, this 13th hole is one of the best competitive holes I have ever seen,” he said. “At first, the player is tempted to venture into the creek on a tee shot by playing close to the corner, because if he reaches that position, he not only shortens the hole, but also gets a more even position for his second shot.
< p>“Departure to the right not only increases the length of the second, but also encounters an annoying bed on the slope. The second hit also entails the important decision of whether or not to try the green. A player daring to pot the creek on the first or second shot could very easily run into a six or seven on that hole. However, the reward for successful and daring play is enticing.»
If your drive survives by flirting with the trees and creek that guard the left side of the fairway, you can be rewarded with some fairly even lies to attack the green with. Credit: Getty Images/David Cannon 
The more you cut off the curve, the better the lie for your second shot, as shown here with Tiger Woods on the way to victory in 2005. Photo: AP/David Phillip
No one has found the lure more irresistible than Bubba Watson in 2014 on her way to a second green jacket. Four years ago, fellow American and fellow left-hander Phil Mickelson made one of the most audacious shots ever seen in the Major's career. Mickelson, who started a fight with Englishman Lee Westwood, was among the trees on the right, and his ball was lying on pine straw.
Perhaps he would have to break away? Not Mickelson. The gap between the trunks directly in front of him might have annoyed a too plump turkey, but he went for it with an iron, and the patrons roared as his ball streaked through the water and cleared the water in front of the ball game surface, stopping inside. four feet. Masters, it's over. Green Jacket No. 3 for the Californian.
It was a stroke of genius, but Watson's heroism was much less subtle and brought sleepless nights to the organizers. He rounded the trees and stayed with the frontal wedge in the second. For a couple of five. Granted, it was «only» 510 yards, but it was still a par-five. And from that moment on, something had to give. The hole was one of the lightest on the field. The reward was too high, the risk too small.
Augusta National was increasingly desperate for the governing bodies of the game. — R&A and the US Golf Association — to keep the ball in, but as their inaction began to seem final, the green jackets proceeded to buy land behind the tee-box from the Augusta Country Club.
The noisy neighbors hung out until their $20 million asking price was reached. For a while, the extension seemed like only a threat — lurking in the background like a parent's warning — but last year a new jersey was designed that would add 35 yards if and when the tournament committee decided to use it (probably at least two days out of four). ) this year. The tee is narrow, tight and lined with trees.
0304 Augusta 13 hole extension
Will the magic stay or is this addition too far away? The preliminary judgments were not favorable.
“I'm afraid they took away the very essence of the hole,” Sergio Garcia told Telegraph Sport. Garcia loved the hole so much that the 2017 champion named his daughter Azalea. “This is a special occasion,” he added.
Patrick Reed is not Bobby Jones, but the terrifying baby in the champion locker room eloquently confirmed these words of the master seven decades ago. “There will be a lot of downtime,” the 2018 winner said. “I played with Dustin [Johnson, 2020 winner] and even he lay down both days.
“With that extra length, you can't cut as many corners, and you can't get far enough down the left side that you can send, say, an iron or less. Anything more than that in my book is just an overlay. I think it will take some of the excitement out of it. Old tees can be used to make a trio of eagles, but double gods can also be brought into play. If it's a lay-up now, there won't be any threes or sevens. Basically it's a bird four, par-five, or the odd scary six.”
That's a big problem. To protect the integrity of the course, the redesigners removed its mystique and appeal. Watson does not want to take the blame. «Hey, no one has ever defended a golf course from Bubba,» he said. “All they have to do is keep betting greens and I'm fighting. No, they are good.”
Not everyone is worried. When asked by Telegraph Sport what he thought of the addition, Rory McIlroy was hardly full of praise, but he was far from critical and, with remarks that could both thrill and petrify his many fans, doesn't believe it's necessarily a three-shot shot. .
«They've made the tee easier because you don't have to do anything with it anymore — just hit it straight into the chute,» he said. «Second shot is now much harder and a bit similar to shot 11.
“The second option is much more difficult because of the way they delineate the front of the green. I used to throw an 8-iron from a prone position to a 13, but now I throw a 5-iron with the ball well above my feet, which is much harder to hit. It just makes you think a little more about the second shot, which I think is good.»
The new T-shirt means more players will have to use a medium or long iron with the ball over their feet — as shown here with Rory McIlroy — if they are going to hit the green in two counts. Credit: Getty Images/Mike Ehrmann
McIlroy has the shape of the ball and the distance to be in sight of the green. But not many will listen to Johnson. “It was soft and there was a breeze, but for me with my ball shape it was easy,” he said. «I don't see many guys going for it, but we'll have to look.»
Westwood is intrigued. «Don't ask me if I played in the new jersey because I didn't qualify for the Masters this year,» he said. But I heard the conversation. I'm sure they'll use the front t-shirts and the drama will still be there.
«I'd be surprised if they didn't move it to Sunday and we can still say 'Masters'.» does not begin until nine last Sundays. They don't want to lose that excitement. But interestingly, the R&A and USGA have now announced their intentions for a shorter ball. Then they won't need that new T-shirt.»
There is a point of view that Augusta received exactly the reaction she wanted, threatening the identity of the cherished 13th. He has the means to put up an incredible sum, but in that respect he may be in an exclusive club.
Fred Ridley also had the right to announce at the chairman's press conference on Wednesday that he supported the proposals and virtually guaranteed that it will implement the new ball rule if, as planned, it is introduced in January 2026. In many ways, this will be a game changer, and for fans of the 13th, too.
As Mike Clayton, former professional turned renowned architect, spoke of Ridley's verdict, and chairman Augusta voiced his support for a rollback, one day may see a turning point in a debate that has raged for decades, invariably involving 13th place being used as a prime example of a hole left behind.
“They don't clash and can only argue based on what advances in equipment have changed the game on the course. . Because no matter what they do, the players will always play there,” said Clayton.
“Of course, the 13th is the case. It seems to me that what they were forced to do was contrary to what Alistair McKenzie wanted, because he was making tee shots with a great sense of space and openness. And he would have gone berserk at what the equipment had done to the hole, which he and Jones had made «a monumental decision.» It's a huge shame.»
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