Augusta National Golf Course - Hole 1

As the Masters Tournament approaches, golfing enthusiasts worldwide turn their attention to Augusta National Golf Course, the site of one of golf's most famous tournaments. The first hole, aptly named "Tea Olive," sets the stage for what promises to be a challenging and exciting tournament.

Hole Overview

Tea Olive is a 445-yard par 4 that offers no gentle opening to the course. This initial hole has been a consistently ranked sixth-most challenging hole on the course, with an all-time scoring average of 4.24 strokes, slightly over par.

Hole Design and Challenges

The tee shot on Tea Olive is a precision shot and a nerve-wracking one at that. The players are presented with a narrow fairway with danger on both sides. The uphill drive doglegs slightly to the right, which makes the opening shot complicated.

The Green

The green at Tea Olive is typical of those at Augusta National Golf Course. It has distinct sections and is designed to punish borderline shots, rolling them down into chipping areas. The complexity of the green was infamously brought into perspective in 2016 when Ernie Els took seven putts - six from within three feet - to hole out in the first round.

Scoring History at hole 1 of Augusta National Golf Course

Tea Olive has seen its share of dramatics over the years. It played the easiest it ever did for one tournament in 1974, with an average of 4.0082 strokes. At the opposite side, it was at its hardest in 2007, averaging 4.47 strokes.

The hole has witnessed five eagles in its lifetime, with ball-strikers holing the second shots every time: Frank Moore (1940), Roberto De Vicenzo (1968), Takaaki Kono (1970), Scott Verplank (1987 and Retief Goosen (2011).

The highest score ever for Tea Olive is a record quintuple-bogey-9 by one Ernie Els in one of the worse putting meltdowns in recent golf history-in 2016.

Strategy and Player Tips

Five-time Masters champion Tiger Woods has some great tips for playing Tea Olive. His take is that with no wind, the hole can be managed with a cut driver or a 3-wood. However, when the winds pick up from west or north, the hole gets much more difficult because the green is not designed for long iron shots into it.

Woods thinks that a score of 16 for the hole over the four days would be a great score and one that would gain strokes on the field.

Historical Context

Tea Olive was not always the first hole at Augusta National Golf Course. When the course originally opened, the hole was actually the 10th. The nines were reversed in 1935 to make Tea Olive the starting hole for the tournament.

Botanical Significance

The hole's name, "Tea Olive," is derived from the fragrant tea olive bushes (Osmanthus fragrans) that line the fairway. The evergreen shrubs, which can be trimmed to take the shape of small trees, produce tiny white blossoms that flower from December through March, adding to the course's renowned beauty and botanical appeal.

As golfers approach the first tee of Augusta National Golf Course, they face not just a golf hole but an examination of their ability, tactics, and nerves. Tea Olive requires respect and accuracy on the very first shot of the round, declaring the tone of the examination, especially on this course that makes no question about its reputation. With its deep history, strategic layout, and the burden of the Masters Tournament on its shoulders, Augusta National's first hole still fascinates players and fans, year in and year out.