Is it possible to find any flaw in the work of Michelangelo in the Sistine Chapel? It seems impossible. A sacrilegious notion. However, surely there are experts capable of finding some imperfection, a specific detail that could enhance the work as a whole. The same goes for Augusta National. The course is a gem. A masterpiece of design and maintenance. Criticising it would be like stepping into quicksand. There’s a risk of being swallowed by the purists. Nevertheless, it’s worth a try. If one is convinced that perfection doesn’t exist in golf, that there’s always room for improvement, the same or more applies when we talk about a course. It remains a living entity in constant evolution that must continuously adapt to changes in equipment. The question, therefore, is: does the beast have any weaknesses?
To answer this tricky question, it’s best to consult those who know the most. No one can have a better opinion than those who have played the Masters at Augusta. It should be noted that everyone agrees it is a masterpiece, the Sistine Chapel of golf, but there’s always some detail that can be made even better. Obviously, these are very personal opinions, but they are very respectful and well-founded.
“Uffff, it’s not easy, is it? You have to look at it with a magnifying glass to find any weak point. Starting from the fact that for me it’s one of the best golf courses I’ve ever played in my life, if not the best, if I had to find something, pushing it, I’d say the fairway of the 7th hole could be improved. As it is, I find the slope from left to right exaggerated. It’s true you don’t necessarily have to hit the driver, but I find the drop too steep. And I could say something similar about the fairway of the 14th,” points out Álvaro Quirós, who shares the record for the lowest round by a Spanish player in Masters history with Jon Rahm. 65 strokes. Álvaro played four Masters.
Gonzalo Fernández-Castaño, who participated in three editions at Augusta, understands what Quirós says about the 7th fairway but provides context. “Probably that slope made more sense in the early years when the fairway was wider and there was more room on the left. Over the years it has narrowed, and that’s likely what has made it so exaggerated and come into play so much,” he explains.
(See that graphic with the evolution of the 7th hole to better understand what the Madrid native explains)
Amazing shapeshifting of Augusta’s 7th “Pampas” hole over the years pic.twitter.com/pfRhVOGV2x
— joemcd_golf (@joemmcdonne11) April 4, 2025
Fernández-Castaño also finds it difficult to spot flaws in Augusta. However, he is clear that in his opinion, the main weakness of the beast is the second shot of the 18th hole. “In general, I don’t think it’s a great hole to finish such a wonderful course as Augusta, but the tee shot is fine. It’s mainly the second shot, a blind, very uphill shot. I think it could have been improved by not going so uphill, perhaps turning to the left, to one of the valleys, although then it wouldn’t end at the clubhouse. It’s not easy, but to me, that second shot seems weak,” he assures. And he adds, in true Gonzalo style: “also, that hole never went very well for me, so I wouldn’t mind if they blew it up,” he says with a laugh.
His loyal companion in Golf sin Etiquetas, Alex Larrazábal, supports the motion and expands on it. He played once at Augusta as an amateur and assures that, being a true gem, if he had to say something that could be improved, it would be the finish, especially the last two holes. “The 17th seems to me the dullest hole on the course, and the 18th goes too uphill. It’s a blind shot, and you only know what happened by the crowd’s reaction. For a masterpiece like Augusta, it doesn’t seem like the appropriate icing on the cake. I would add that it lacks a bit of tension in some tee shots and hasn’t aged very well with the changes in equipment, something that happens to many courses. Shorter, with hard greens and balata balls, I think it was better,” he highlights.
Manolo Piñero also played it in a single edition and points out an interesting aspect. The Extremaduran based in Marbella describes it as the best reflection of American golf. It’s Disneyworld on a golf course. Big. Beastly. He considers it a marvel and highlights especially the design around the greens. “I love that there are shaved escape areas, the so-called run-offs. The rough levels everyone more, but the approach from those escape areas distinguishes the good from the very good better, as there are many ways to do it,” he describes.
To find the weak point, he draws on his personal experience. “When I played it in ’78, I remember that after a bad first day, I played very well the second. I was under par and with a chance to make the cut. However, on the 17th hole, my tee shot crashed into the famous Eisenhower Tree, which jutted out from the left and into the fairway. I made a double bogey and missed the cut by one. I think that tree, despite it hurting me, added a lot to that tee shot. Once it fell in the storm, I would put a couple of bunkers in the middle of the fairway, about 275-280 yards from the tee, so whoever wants to clear them has to take a risk, and whoever prefers to play short has a longer shot to the green. I think that would improve the hole a bit,” he states with his usual and extraordinary clarity.
Precisely, regarding how the course has aged, Miguel Ángel Jiménez, one of the most experienced in Augustology, with 16 participations, the first in 1995 and the last in 2015, believes it could have been done differently. “What they’ve done is lengthen, lengthen, and lengthen. Also, over the years, the grass on the fairways started to be cut against the tees. This way, it benefits only those who hit longer and with balls that drop steeply. Practically all the fairways at Augusta have a ridge that if you don’t hit very long, if you’re medium or short, the shot hits the ridge and with the grass against, it hardly advances, while the longer hitters clear that ridge and bounce on the flat and can roll. I think the short and medium hitters don’t have a chance to win,” he points out.
In a similar vein, Nacho Garrido, who played the Masters in 1998, expresses himself. “It’s not easy to say what can be improved at Augusta, but I do think it’s a course that was made to be played with the equipment of the past and balata balls. I would love to see a Masters again with 250-meter drives and not 300. I think that’s its essence, the slopes of the fairways, the movement, and that’s been lost a bit with the changes and the tees back,” he notes.
Returning to specifics, but also related to gaining distance on all the holes over the years, Jon Rahm, champion in 2023 and playing his ninth Masters this year, talks about the 15th, par 5. “I would play it a bit shorter. With the current distance, if the wind blows against, you don’t consider going for the green, and it’s a shame because it’s a very spectacular shot. I would set it so there’s always an option to go for it in two,” he explains. Just to say something, because he also agrees with the rest that it’s one of the best courses in the world, a true gem.
Finally, Sergio García, champion in 2017 and the Spaniard who has played this course the most times after José María Olazábal, no less than 25 times, doesn’t quite find weaknesses, at least in terms of a complete hole. “I’d say each hole has its little thing. There are some tee shots that, yes, maybe don’t have much, but then the second shot is very interesting, or the greens. You always find something that makes it interesting,” he summarises.
It’s not easy to scrutinise the Sistine Chapel and find any flaw, but there’s always room for improvement, and the first ones who are hands-on every year are precisely the people responsible for Augusta. Rare is the edition where there’s nothing new on the course. This year, for example, beyond the fallen trees, the 10th tee we’ve already discussed on TenGolf, there are modifications on some greens. One of the most striking is explained by José María Olazábal, double Masters champion with 35 editions under his belt: “You can notice the change in the new green on the 16th hole. The slopes are a bit different, especially in the back and the short right side, the slope isn’t as pronounced as before,” he highlights.
At Augusta, as in golf, there’s always room for improvement, even if it seems impossible.
