Try your hand planning National's lost 19th hole
Augusta National Golf Club's nines were reversed between the 1934 and 1935 Masters.
That is one of the biggest changes ever made at the course, but course co-designer Alister Mackenzie also had a novel idea for a 19th hole in his original plan for Augusta National.
The extra hole would allow golfers to have an extra wager or a chance to play for double or nothing.
Mackenzie's plan called for golfers to exit the 18th green and go to their left. A tee would be built there, and the short, 90-yard hole would play up the hill to where the practice putting green is now located.
It was never built.
Now, here's your chance to fulfill Mackenzie's plan and design a new "finishing" hole for Augusta National.
THE PARAMETERS
1. Use the course aerial (above) as a guide.
2. The hole must be a par-3, no more than 100 yards.
3. The direction of the hole is toward the Par-3 Course. The tee can be anywhere behind the 18th green (left in photo).
HOW TO ENTER
Send entries to John Boyette, Sports Editor, The Augusta Chronicle , 725 Broad St., Augusta, GA 30901.
You can e-mail entries to john.boyette@augustachronicle.com.
All entries will become property of The Chronicle and cannot be returned.
Winners will be published in the 2011 Masters special section, and keepsake prizes will be given to the top three entries.
Description from Mackenzie's article in The American Golfer :
"Nineteenth hole -- 90 yards
"Clifford Roberts, Grantland Rice and some of the other governors thought it might be interesting to have a real nineteenth hole, so that the loser could have the opportunity of getting his money back by playing double or quits.
"This nineteenth hole will be an attractive plateau green, narrow at one end, where the flag will usually be placed, but wide at the other end so as to give a safety route to the player who has not the courage or skill to pitch to the narrow end of the green.
"In this respect the hole will be somewhat similar to the short hole going out at Lakeside, near Los Angeles.
"I know of only two golf courses with an actual nineteenth hole.
"One is Knollwood (New York) and the other the Tam-O-Shanter Club (Detroit)."
The green of Mackenzie's 19th hole (above, left) was near where the club's warmup practice putting green (at left, bottom) is now. The tee was between the ninth and 18th greens.
