Bubba Watson’s advice for players making their first start at the Masters Tournament next month? Don’t let the course scare you.
Situated just a few hundred yards beyond a relatively nondescript road to the north west of Augusta, Georgia, the hallowed turf of Augusta National Golf Club has been the venue for the Masters since 1934 and is the only Major to be played at the same course every year.
While the venue is adored across the world, navigating through all of the nasty surprises that Augusta’s 18 holes toss up is a tricky task and one that is crucial to winning the Masters. Prior course knowledge is favourable given the fact that the last man to win on his debut came back in 1979 when Fuzzy Zoeller defeated Tom Watson and Ed Snead in a sudden-death play-off.
So, who better to ask for advice when driving down Magnolia Lane for the first time than two-time champion Bubba Watson, who will be playing his 16th Masters Tournament next month.
In 2012, he defeated Louis Oosthuizen with the help of a miraculous 52-degree wedge shot from the trees on the second playoff hole on the 10th, before becoming just the 17th player to win multiple Green Jackets two years later after defeating tournament rookies Jonas Blixt and Jordan Spieth by three strokes.
“I’ve got a couple of thoughts,” Watson told Gulf News.
“The first of those is to take it all in and enjoy it – you’re that good to get there that you’re going to be retuning. If you’re good enough to get there once, you’re good enough to get there twice, so take it all in.
“My second thought is don’t let the course scare you. The golf course used to play so firm that you couldn’t play certain shots, but now you can.
“Guys can spin shots around the greens and lag putts from good spots, so just missing the ball in the right spot is key. Don’t let the course scare you so much that you play too safe because you can attack that course, especially if you’re hitting the ball half decent.”
U.S. Open champion Wyndham Clark is among the rookies in the field this year, alongside reigning DP World Tour Championship winner Nicolai Højgaard, whose victory in Dubai in November saw him surge into the top 50 of the Official World Golf Ranking, ensuring he received an invitation to the Masters.
The first Major Championship of the year gets underway on April 11.
