It is known as White Dogwood, which is a small tree
that provides an abundance of white flowers at this time of the year. The tree itself is a beauty to behold, but here, as the 11th hole of Augusta National Golf Club, it is a perennially source of pain for players with their eyes on the green jacket.
Over the years, this par 4 has proven to be as hard as any hole on the course. In last year’s tournament, it played as the toughest of them all – averaging 4.48 – and, historically, only the 10th has ranked tougher.
White Dogwood serves as the introduction to Amen Corner, a tee shot that plays downhill and left-to-right. A pond guards the green to the left and a bunker is strategically placed right-centre. It is a hole that has evolved: in 1950, the pond by the green was built; in 2002, the tees were moved back 30-35 yards and moved five yards to the player’s right; in 2004, 36 pine trees were added to the right of the fairway; and, in 2006, the tees were moved back a further 15 yards as part of the so-called Tiger-proofing exercise.
In yesterday's first round, the evidence of its toughness was still apparent as Charley Hoffman, Russell Henley, Justin Rose, Patrick Reed and Bubba Watson – all players who had made strong starts – struggled.
They all bogeyed the hole, which was playing to an average of 4.40 and living up to its reputation as one of the most fearsome holes in golf.
Famously defeated
Some players, though, retain a soft spot for the tough nut. One of them is
Larry Mize
, who famously defeated Greg Norman in a play-off in the 1987 Masters. The Augusta native seemed to be down and out after missing the green with his approach, whilst Norman was on the front edge. Mize played a bump and run with a 56-degree wedge, and the ball tracked down to the hole and settled in for a birdie. Norman, stunned, missed with his own birdie attempt.
To this day, Mize has refused to try to repeat the shot. “The only way I go over there is if I hit the ball in that area during the tournament. The thing is, if I go back and hit the shot again, then my memory is not of the shot. Now when I see the shot [on TV], it keeps the memory pure. It’s one of the great decisions I’ve made, never gone back.”
