Sports fans are inclined to identify arrivals of seasons with sporting events. And for golf fans, the spring only begins on the weekend of the Masters, the season's first major championship that starts on April 11th.
Thanks to some quirky Tour schedule that moved the Shell Houston Open to late March, there is an unusual three-week gap between the Players Championship and the Masters in 2002. Given the intriguing story lines, however, this year's Masters will prove worth that extra week of wait.
Augusta National Golf Club of Augusta, Ga., the yearly home of the Masters, is a sublime golf course rich with tradition and indelible images, despite the fact that the Masters is the youngest of the four modern majors. Since legendary Robert Tyre Jones Jr., a.k.a. Bobby Jones, and Wall Street investor Cliff Roberts founded the event in 1934, the Masters, initially called the Augusta National Invitational Tournament, has grown to become a defining golf event. From early winners Byron Nelson, Gene Sarazen and Ben Hogan to the Big Three of Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus and Gary Player and to modern day's multiple winners like Nick Faldo, Bernhard Langer, José Maria Olazábal and Tiger Woods-the Masters certainly does not lack in the list of great champions.
In recent years, Augusta National has undergone some noticeable changes. Granted, the course has made some alterations every year since its opening, but the lengthening of the course over 2001 summer has drawn a great deal of attention. Since Woods broke the Masters scoring record in his 1997 victory, Augusta has grown rough and moved back a few tee boxes. Those changes pale in comparison to the expansion prepared for this year's championship.
Nine holes (Nos. 1, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 13, 14 and 18) underwent some modifications, but since the television viewers will mostly get to see the back nine-back nine coverage on weekends has been the tacit deal between CBS and Augusta National-it may be appropriate to look at the altered back nine holes. By the way, for the first time in the championship history, except for the 2000 Masters when weather delay pushed back tee times and the front-nine was shown in its entirety, there will be planned 18-hole coverage by CBS of this year's final round.
Tees were moved back by 10 yards and another 10 to the left on the par-4 10th hole, a severe dog leg to left. It now plays 495 yards, but long hitters should be able to catch the downslope with a long draw off the tee and have mid- to short-iron to the green.
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