What would you shoot at Augusta on Sunday?

[pepsiplusconker]

Are you guys talking like you will play your A game 100% if you played Augusta? It sounds like it the way some of you think you could shoot 85 or something.

Think like this, some guys this week shot 80+, now do you think your A game is just as good as one of these guys C games or how ever you want to refer to it as?

It's highly unlikely.

[MS256]

Are you guys talking like you will play your A game 100% if you played Augusta? It sounds like it the way some of you think you could shoot 85 or something. Think like this, some guys this week shot 80+, now do you think your A game is just as good as one of these guys C games or how ever you want to refer to it as?  It's highly unlikely.

Chance to play Augusta? More than likely would play my A+ game! Hell I get excited and play my A game even at "normal" nice courses that I almost never get to play. I reserve my B, C, and D games for the crappy courses.

[JP golf]

Chance to play Augusta? More than likely would play my A+ game!

Hell I get excited and play my A game even at "normal" nice courses that I almost never get to play.

I reserve my B, C, and D games for the crappy courses.

HA HA.....  True statement.  I knew if I was playing Augusta I would be working on my chipping and putting and touch shots prior to going to play there... I would also bring my course management skills and play to spots choosing strategically where I would want to miss and play to yardages that let me to at greens (not necessarily at pins)...  Currently I play very aggressive which leads to more birdies and eagles, but more doubles also.  My scores are higher because I try to pull off shots I have no reason to try- if playing the odds and choosing the smart strategy (I have fun getting out of trouble lol)...

I do say, I play very different at courses that I rarely play.  I go for low numbers not just the fun shot in the moment.  My home course... Yes, I'm threading that needle with a low cut and trying to chase the ball on the green from out of the trees on the par 5 - not to mention the water on the left!

Fun to think about even!

[tefunk]

What is the difference between an A game and a C game? Is it relative to a test grade, where an A would be a 95 and a C would be a 75... So a 20 shot difference? Then yes... I'm sure there are enough people on here who's A game is as good as a Pro's C game. If you're going to tell people how they should think (I.e. "Think like this"), you may need to provide more detail. Otherwise it's all very subjective...

[iacas]

It sounds like it the way some of you think you could shoot 85 or something.

I could. Just because you can't doesn't mean others here couldn't.

[M2R]

Ray Romano did something similar, got to play the Monday after the Masters, same pins, same tees. Shot 106 on his first try and 101 the last time he got to try it. Ray claimed to fluctuate between 14 and 17 handicap (index?) for the first run. http://sports.espn.go.com/golf/masters06/news/story?id=2394886

It could be argued that Monday conditions are not valid in this context and I would tend to agree but my counter would be that from year to year Sunday conditions can vary too so ... meh. Plus likely as practically close to the conditions outlined in the OP as I can imagine anyway. In any case I'm accepting it as a valid data point that a hack can get around Augusta in something close to the scores predicted in the chart posted in this thread.

[AmazingWhacker]

The thing that would scare me most are the green speeds.  They looked crazy on tv.  Only once did I play greens that were super-fast and it as brutal.  I mean, 4 putting from 10 feet away kind of brutal.  And I'm sure they were slower than Sunday at the Masters.

So if I figure twice as many putts, plus factor in the length and extra hazards vs where I normally play . . .and I would guess I would shoot around 125 if I played really well.

[Righty to Lefty]

Why would you be scared of the green speed? It's just like anything else in golf where you have to make an adjustment. On slow greens you have to convince yourself to hit the putt much harder than you perceive and on fast greens it is the opposite. And if you are on some of their crazy slopes then all you can do is basically touch the putt and it is going to get to the hole and theirs nothing that you can do about it other than try and start it on the proper line.

The main thing I see at Augusta that would help our cause to shoot good scores is that as long as you don't hit it into the hazard, the rough is very playable as is the pine staw. I also don't believe that there is a poor lie on the entire course so most any competent golfer should be able to actually chip the ball better than normal.

What most people forget is that a competent single digit handicap very likely knows " how to miss" off the teebox and that is a very underappreciated trait of a good golfer. My pro here will often say that he can't tell exactly where his ball is going to end up, but he is "certain where it will NOT end up" and that is so very important to have a one way miss on a particular hole.

[JP1111]

The thing that would scare me most are the green speeds.  They looked crazy on tv.  Only once did I play greens that were super-fast and it as brutal.  I mean, 4 putting from 10 feet away kind of brutal.  And I'm sure they were slower than Sunday at the Masters. So if I figure twice as many putts, plus factor in the length and extra hazards vs where I normally play . . .and I would guess I would shoot around 125 if I played really well.

Twice as many putts? The greens are tough but not tough. I avarage about 33 putts, ok, but not great. 66 putts? The greens aren't made of sheet ice.

[pepsiplusconker]

I could. Just because you can't doesn't mean others here couldn't.

Well done, you're an exception. Also being a pro, I'd expect you to shoot 85 on a good day. I'm talking about the 9 handicaps who said they could shoot below 90.

I just think that almost everyone in here is thinking they could shoot 8-10 shots less than they actually would.

BUt yeh, I can't tell people how to think can I

Edit: then again, I know how good a good player can play, i.e. you can easily avoid ever giving away penalty shots by playing a little safer than usual and in general, never hitting a really bad miss, something which bad/average players do all the time

So basically, I'm just arguing with myself.

Would love to have the chance to score 100 any way

[MS256]

What most people forget is that a competent single digit handicap very likely knows " how to miss" off the teebox and that is a very underappreciated trait of a good golfer. My pro here will often say that he can't tell exactly where his ball is going to end up, but he is "certain where it will NOT end up" and that is so very important to have a one way miss on a particular hole.

Absolutely!!!

Anybody with a better than average (for their handicap) short game and the common sense to stay out of trouble and not go for things they have no business going for should shoot pretty close to what the chart says they should shoot.

For the higher handicap player or shorter hitters I actually think that Augusta offers many more bailout options than plenty of other courses. There aren't any holes that require huge carries over water or other unplayable, un-findable junk.

Heck there's a course near here that a short hitter simply can't play from the tips because they will never reach some of the fairways and would have a lost ball on every shot. I was playing that course with a guy one day from the tips (which was stupid but another story). When we came to one of those holes he tried and failed several times to reach the fairway and he said "Well there is no chance I would ever join this club". I asked him why and he said "Because I can't play it."

I laughed and said "Hell Fred, there isn't a rule that says you have to play from the tips."

[Crim]

After watching the Masters and playing 3 rounds of golf this weekend....I'm changing my answer from 138 to 238....

[MacDutch]

Am I entitled to bring my A-game and have a caddie who knows his way around the course? Am I entitled to practice all week like the pro's do? If these questions are answered 'yes' I would break 100.

[albatross]

Lets keep it real. It's a golf course that is pretty difficult. But to act like just walking onto the grounds adds 25 strokes to your handicap is just ridiculous. Sure playing it sight unseen I'm sure everyone would chop it up and play terribly but if a member can play better than Rory like he did yesterday then that is a testament to not let the mystique of the course blow up your score. The tournament setup and teeboxes cost the member 9 strokes off of his course record of 61 from a forward teebox. At the end of the day a good shot is a good shot regardless of whether it is hit on Augusta or a muni course. The objective of a course design is to of course make you forget that this is the same 100,150,200 yard shot that you've hit many times before.

That "member" also holds the course record. It's not like he's some schlep or something.

[rkim291968]

After watching the Masters and playing 3 rounds of golf this weekend....I'm changing my answer from 138 to 238....

I saw a few 4 putts (dang!) and numerous 3 putts.  Pros struggling around green was worth watching The Masters on TV.  Otherwise, without Tiger, and not much drama on Sunday, The Masters felt flat.

[Righty to Lefty]

That "member" also holds the course record. It's not like he's some schlep or something.

So are you saying that member is better than Rory, who is a two time major champion, and that he should be on tour? Or could it be that he is a pretty darn good golfer who is very familiar with playing on Augusta. The fact is that the mystique of the golf course is what draws us in and would initially push your typical scores higher than normal. However if you were a member and played the course multiple times per week then Augusta is just another golf course.

There are many courses that are more difficult than Augusta but the mystique of the course is unmatched. Now if the USGA set up Augusta with U.S. Open intentions then you could say that course is gonna take 30 shots from an amateur but anyone watching the Masters in HD can easily see that it is so beautifully manicured that I don't think it is possible to have a bad lie anywhere on the course. You never once see a player just trying to chop a ball back out into the fairway because the rough was so penal. Instead they were relatively unharmed in going for the green and had to account for a less spin when the shot gets to the green.

[rkim291968]

For the higher handicap player or shorter hitters I actually think that Augusta offers many more bailout options than plenty of other courses. There aren't any holes that require huge carries over water or other unplayable, un-findable junk.

I fit into both category and I fully agree.   It looks like most of my big numbers will come from "around the green" after doing my usual GIR+1 (or +2).

I didn't notice this in previous years.   It seem like the only way to make this course play hard for today's players (long off tee, wedge into green) seems to be by tricking up the greens ("concrete" surface, difficult hole location).

[albatross]

So are you saying that member is better than Rory, who is a two time major champion, and that he should be on tour? Or could it be that he is a pretty darn good golfer who is very familiar with playing on Augusta. The fact is that the mystique of the golf course is what draws us in and would initially push your typical scores higher than normal. However if you were a member and played the course multiple times per week then Augusta is just another golf course.

There are many courses that are more difficult than Augusta but the mystique of the course is unmatched. Now if the USGA set up Augusta with U.S. Open intentions then you could say that course is gonna take 30 shots from an amateur but anyone watching the Masters in HD can easily see that it is so beautifully manicured that I don't think it is possible to have a bad lie anywhere on the course. You never once see a player just trying to chop a ball back out into the fairway because the rough was so penal. Instead they were relatively unharmed in going for the green and had to account for a less spin when the shot gets to the green.

You're really over analyzing my comment. I was just clarifying that the guy that played with Rory holds the course record.  Your post made it sound like they picked a random member to go out and play with him.  I was just making sure people realized that no member has ever played this course as well as Knox.  It adds a lot of context to your statement.  I just looked back in the thread and I saw that you mentioned him having the record a couple pages ago.  Sorry.

So what was your guess as to what you would shoot as a 5 handicap?  I didn't go all the way back to look.