SPRING VS FALL: CONDITIONS ROLE IN SHAPING PLAY

Long before players first tee off for a round, course conditions form a fundamental part of its playability.  They are a core consideration that drive design decisions such as the course routing and shaping of holes to embrace the natural elements in their strategy, grass choice and construction style, and even the inclusion of the surrounding landscape to frame the course and help create its character.

So, with this season’s postponements and rescheduling on Tour, it has been interesting to see professional tournaments in new lights and, ultimately, entertaining new challenges for players. Only recently the autumnal conditions at the European Tour’s flagship event at Wentworth threw players a curveball, with  softer ground, cooler temperatures and blustery winds asking new questions of players.

Which brings us into this week where an autumnal Augusta National brings us the first ever November Masters. What are we to expect? Will the new timings impact the tournament? And how might strategies change because of the autumnal course playability?

There is no doubt that conditions will play a factor; two of the highest ever Masters’ scores were recorded as a result of the conditions, including Zach Johnson’s winning ‘+1’ back in 2007 where a blustery and particularly cold Augusta shaped the week’s narrative. In fact, Johnson’s tournament strategy quite literally took caution to the wind, as he decided not to take a single par-5 on in two during the entire week… (we’re sure certain players won’t be adopting that strategy this week!).

In general, wind is often presented as golf’s nemesis, think of Troon’s Postage Stamp where on a blustery day from the Irish Sea stages a formidable challenge and a foreshadowing bogey, but is reinvented under calmer conditions. Equally so for Augusta, the autumnal northern winds completely change the challenge that we are used to, with players set to face an oncoming breeze on the first and a unique right to left gust in Amen Corner.

Meanwhile, back down on the ground, how will conditions influence Augusta’s notoriously fast greens and rolling fairways? Well, with the help of the high-tech Sub Air system under each of the greens, Augusta has the ability to control each green’s climate and moisture content to replicate consistent performance whether in Spring or Fall. So, for the greens, barring serious rain, expect nothing less than the very best Augusta has to offer.

However, the fairway grass is far more likely to be impacted and as a result, so will its playability.

The agronomic programmes change from season to season to protect the course and yield the famous Augusta landscape. Whilst its fairways are naturally Bermuda grass through the heat of the Summer, come Fall the grass hibernates and browns off, requiring over-seeding of cool season Rye grass in the autumn to ensure green playing surfaces through the winter and spring ready for The Masters’ traditional date in April. To avoid going too far down an agronomy rabbit hole, establishing this new seed requires more water to take root, grow and ‘green-up’. So, along with what is expected to be a wet week in Augusta, we can expect softer fairways because of the added watering programme and slightly longer grass due to the inability to cut it too low and tight – something the players and Sir Nick have already noticed alter playability, especially around the greens.

Sir Nick said, “For sure the difference in ground and air conditions will impact the strategies players take this week. For instance, less grain around the greens, accompanied with the wetter ground, will give players more options to run it through the approach and fringes. We will see players having to adapt their game to find a balance here, from how they normally play it to how it is set up this week; that is certainly something the more experienced players won’t be used to be able to do at Augusta.” 

Ultimately, if it is softer it will play longer, and for the quintessential second-shot golf course where a difference of 10—15 yards could make all the difference, like Augusta, it should offer a different challenge. Certainly, at least, for those in the ‘non-bomber’ category.

Admittedly, it may be foolish to scrutinise agronomy at Augusta, and if there is one place on earth that knows how to treat their grass, Augusta National is the one. But this is exactly the point, most clubs don’t have these resources, and course conditions can completely morph from season to season because of varying agronomic obstacles and changes.

And then there’s course identity, aesthetic and character, which are so often determined by uniquely local conditions, which in turn perform such a fundamental role in defining playability. Nowhere does aesthetics matter more than Augusta and yet this time…it will look different. The vibrant azaleas, pastel petals of jasmine and magnolias will give way to the autumnal reds and yellows of hardwoods changing hue. It creates a different atmosphere and ultimately a new stage. Season to season, the look and feel of courses change with the evolving aesthetic and although this might not impact the shot shapes or strategies, it does impact the experience we have on the course.

At Faldo Design we hold immense appreciation for the natural landscape. As golfers and course designers, ultimately it is our playground and so it is the core of our ideas and our greatest inspiration. Naturally, how a course plays is therefore acutely influenced by conditions and their effect on the natural environment and so, without a doubt, changes in playability are inevitable from Spring to Fall. Though what the differences will be this week…I guess we’ll have to wait until tomorrow to find out.

And, without the famous patrons in attendance this year – always a huge factor in how the drama unfolds on TV – expect the 2020 broadcast of The Masters to feel like a very different tournament, perhaps with more focus on how the course plays than ever before. But because of those differences it will be a unique experience and audiences are bound to tune in in droves. After all, it is The Masters at Augusta National.