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April 3, 2019 - 9:43 am EDT 6 years ago

Poulter Posts Changes To Augusta National’s 5th Hole

Chris Chaney Chris Chaney

It seems like the year’s first major championship has snuck up on us a bit, but next week the golf world’s eyes will be focused on Augusta National Golf Club and The Masters Tournament.

Every year, the powers-that-be at ANGC make changes to the course, but there was nothing subtle about what went on at the club’s fifth hole in the time between Patrick Reed’s green jacket ceremony and this week as competitors got their most recent look at the golf course in preparation for next week’s tournament.

Augusta National Lengthening The Par-4 Fifth Hole


Most players in the field next week at Augusta National will have made scouting trips in the winter months, but we got our first glimpse at what the reconstructed fifth hole is going to play like thanks to an Instagram post from Ian Poulter.

Poulter, who will be making his 14th appearance at The Masters next week, shared side-by-side images of his old yardage book’s fifth hole with the reconstructed one.

“Look at the difference of the back tee for us at (The Masters) next week,” Poulter captioned. “It’s gone back 45 yards and the fairway bunkers have been brought back to the tee box 45 yards as well. New flatter area on the left-hand side of the green for possible new pin position.”

The lengthening of the fifth hole from a 455-yard par-4 to a 500-yard hole was made possible by moving the tee box across Old Berckmans Road, which was meant to alleviate congestion between the tee and the nearby fourth green. 

Aside from the lengthening of the hole, 19 mega hardwoods, eight mega pines, 13 hardwoods and 77 pine trees and almost 200 bushes will be planted, along with 83 holly plants and 77 tea olive plants were planned to be planted as well.

The fifth hole played as the sixth-hardest on the course during the 2018 Masters, playing to a 4.16 scoring average. You can expect that scoring average to rise this year.