AUGUSTA, Ga. – Not even 24 hours had passed after Hideki Matsuyama slipped on the green jacket last April at Augusta National Golf Club, and the preparations for this year’s Masters were underway.
It started with heavy equipment being brought onto the course to remove a massive tree from its former home near the 15th tee.
While some traditions at Augusta National are hardly ever altered and some rules are downright absolute, the course itself has a long history of evolving with the times. And the process of changing some things for this year’s Masters, which begins Thursday, started immediately after last year’s event ended. The primary changes: making the par-4 11th and par-5 15th each 15 to 20 yards longer and lowering the tee boxes on both holes.
“I think this place changes a little bit every year,” said Scottie Scheffler, whose recent run of PGA Tour success has him at No. 1 in the Official World Golf Ranking and among the favorites at the first men’s major championship tournament of the year.
Scheffler’s assessment of Augusta National isn’t wrong.