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Posted April 3, 2012, 4:45 pm
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Masters Insider: Wednesday is Par-3 day

  • Article Photos
    Masters Insider: Wednesday is Par-3 day
    Photos description
    Ike's Pond was created at the suggestion of President Eisenhower after his second visit to the course.
  • Article Photos
    Masters Insider: Wednesday is Par-3 day
    Photos description
    Ike's Pond on the Par 3 course during Tuesday's practice round of the 2012 Masters Tournament at Augusta National Golf Club on April 3, 2012, in Augusta, Ga. (Andrew Davis Tucker/Staff)

WHERE TO GO: Ike’s Pond

President Eisenhower left his mark all over Augusta National Golf Club, but during his second visit he was walking on the eastern part of the property when he discovered what he thought would be an ideal spot for a fish pond. Eisenhower told Clifford Roberts about his discovery – he even had a suggestion for where the dam should be – and the pond was promptly built.

Now Ike’s Pond is an integral part of the Par-3 Course, and the eighth and ninth holes of the course are played over the spring-fed pond that occupies three acres.

 

UNDER THE OAK TREE: Mike Tirico will serve as host of ESPN’s broadcasts of the Par-3 Contest and of its Thursday and Friday telecasts and will conduct player interviews from Butler Cabin. This will be the fifth year the Par-3 Contest has been televised.

Q: What’s your favorite thing about golf?

A: I’d say being at the locations. When we were working 15, 17 events a year it was the uniqueness of the place, because the venue doesn’t really impact the competition in sports, but in golf it does. You get to places like Augusta National, it heightens that. To me that still remains the charm of calling golf.

Q: What makes the Par-3 unique?

A: I think it’s both ends of the age spectrum. It’s special to have a sport where you have Arnold, Jack and Gary, all 65 and up, and you’ll have 6 and under at the most revered event and special golf course we have in the country. You don’t see that anywhere in any other sport, not even close.

Q: Do you believe in the Par-3 jinx?

A: I want to be here the year that it ends. I’m a believer that all history gets rewritten at some point. I’d like to see it happen at some point. And interviewing the players who have won in recent years, whether it’s Luke Donald or Louis Oosthuizen, they have all been confident they will be the ones to change it. So I like to stand next to that guy and look into his eyes and say, “Do you really believe what you’re saying?” And in many cases, they do.

 

HISTORY LESSON: Par-3 Contest

The Par-3 Contest began in 1960, and the inaugural event was won by Sam Snead. The course was designed by Clifford Roberts and architect George Cobb, and the par-27 course measures 1,060 yards. Art Wall (1965) and Gay Brewer (1973) hold the course record of 20, but the famous jinx remains: No one has ever won the Par-3 and the Masters Tournament in the same year.

Par 3 Contest Photo Galleries: