FROM THE 1950S THROUGH THE 1970S,
MANY HOLES REQUIRED CONTROLLED LONG IRONS
OR EVEN WOODS INTO THE GREENS.
(6 355 metres), 250 yards longer than when it opened, putting it in the same weight class as US Open stalwarts like Oakmont, Oakland Hills, Oak Hill, Inverness and Winged Foot. Despite hole-to-hole fluctua- tions, this yardage remained roughly intact through the end of the 1990s.
tional had essentially matured into the grounds we recognise now, even down to the blue dye in the ponds, added for the first time in 1951. The decades between then and the late 1970s represent a halcyon period of relative stability when the course con- sistently measured about 6 950 yards
1950-’70s AN EQUABLE TEST COMES
INTO ITS OWN 6 900-7 040 yards
Average winning score: 281 (-7) Lowest winning score: 271 (Jack Nicklaus 1965; Ray Floyd 1976) By the early 1950s, Augusta Na-
HOLE 13 / 1966 Fairway lies during the 1960s usually determined whether players could go for the par 5 in two.
66 GOLF DIGEST SOUTH AFRICA
MARCH/APRIL 2024
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