Golf

Long on fun

Augusta National's short course, home to each year's par-3 tournament, provides beauty and excitement to rival the main event. But beware the jinx.

By BOB HARIG
Published April 6, 2005

AUGUSTA, Ga. - Framed by azaleas and dogwoods, with tall pines that provide a distinct aroma, the course elicits a variety of reactions, mostly awe. There are few places on earth a golfer would rather traverse.

Augusta National? Well, yes. The home of the Masters is golf heaven for most.

But we're talking about the adjacent Par-3 Course, an incredible mixture of short holes in the tradition of Augusta National that gets its share of rave reviews, too.

The 1,060-yard course is home to today's annual Par-3 Contest, a Masters tradition since 1960. The holes range in distance from 70 yards (No. 2) to 140 yards (No. 6).

Every year, on the eve of the year's first major championship, a good number of participants, as well as non-competing past champions and honorary invitees, tee it up in a fun little tournament witnessed by thousands.

Players often have sons or daughters caddie for them, the mood is light and fun, and the golf, typically, is excellent. Over the years, 55 holes-in-one have been made during the tournament, including one last year by Tiger Woods on the 135-yard ninth that had the ground trembling.

"It was sweet," Woods said. "I played with Arnold (Palmer) in his last Par-3 Contest. I have the scorecard at home. He signed it and I was keeping his score."

Augusta National was built in the early 1930s, with the first Masters played in 1934. The Par-3 course was not designed until 1958 by George Cobb, with help from longtime Augusta National chairman Clifford Roberts.

As a former U.S. Amateur champion, Tampa's Fred Ridley can play the Par-3 Contest every year, and has done so numerous times since his 1975 title got him a Masters invitation. And he remembers his first Par-3.

"I bumped into Clifford Roberts, who was still the chairman of the club," Ridley recalled. "I introduced myself and he welcomed me. He told me, "Don't you forget to go play the Par-3 some.' That was his pride and joy. It was his brainchild, as the club was. That was something he initiated. And he was very proud of it. That was kind of my introduction.

"In those years, the first hole was the little hole down the hill that's now a practice hole. The second green is what they use for a putting green. The hole is where the course starts now. The eighth and ninth holes weren't there then. So the course is actually 11 holes."

Ridley, president of the U.S. Golf Association, is an Augusta National member and said playing the Par-3 Course is part of the experience of a visit.

Last year, he played in the Par-3 with Phil Mickelson, who went on to win the Masters.

"The last time I saw him, I said, "You might want to hang around me a little bit,' " Ridley said. "This worked."

Many first-time visitors to the course don't even know the Par-3 exists. From the clubhouse looking out onto the main course, the Par-3 is located to the left, behind a series of cabins where members often stay.

The setting is idyllic, with two ponds making up a good part of the routing of the holes. One of them is called Ike's Pond, in honor of former President Dwight Eisenhower, an Augusta member who liked to fish there.

"If it weren't for the Par-3 Tournament, many people wouldn't know it existed," said Charles Howell, an Augusta native. "You don't see it behind the cabins. It's awesome to play. A lot of different yardages, the wind swirls just like it does in the main tournament. Every day I play the golf course not during tournament week, I go play the Par-3 Course. It's enjoyable."

The Par-3 Contest has a bit of its own history. Sam Snead won the first one in 1960, shooting 23 for nine holes. The little tournament is held on Wednesday afternoon, after the big course is closed for last-minute preparations, but only a few highlights are caught on film, adding to the aura.

Then there is the jinx. No Par-3 Contest winner ever has gone on to win the Masters in the same year, which might explain why some players have a phobia about winning it.

"You know what, I haven't played it the last five years, just for that fact," said Ernie Els. "I'm too scared to win it."

But that doesn't mean he doesn't enjoy the course. Els often will visit Augusta to practice during a non-tournament week, taking friends and family along. They play 18 or 27 holes on the big course, then venture over to the Par-3. "That is just an awesome place," Els said.

"The Par-3 is a nice event for fun for the guys to play, for people in the practice rounds, but that's never been my priority, I must say," said Jack Nicklaus, a six-time winner of the Masters but never a winner of the Par-3 Contest.

"It may become my priority," he joked. "I can reach all of those greens, I think."

Today Ireland's Padraig Harrington will be going after his third Par-3 title in a row. He shot 21 in 2003 to tie David Toms, and shot 23 to win last year. And he's not concerned about any Par-3 Contest jinx.

"I've never hit a golf shot in my life where I haven't been trying," Harrington said. "It's all baloney. How could winning a tournament on a Wednesday affect how you play on a Thursday? That's rubbish."

Maybe not. Woods was tied with Harrington last year, but skipped the playoff.

[Last modified April 6, 2005, 01:07:18]