Augusta National officially lengthens iconic 13th hole on Amen Corner ahead of Masters 2023

One of the most iconic holes at the Augusta National will look a little different at the 2023 Masters. No. 13 par-5, commonly known as Azalea, will play 545 yards in this year’s tournament. That’s 35 yards more than his previous 510 yards.

The famous risk-reward hole that played a role in the greenjackets’ win and loss, the constant increase in distance achieved by players over the years has reduced some of Azalea’s risk.

There have been rumors of an extension on the 13th, of course, for years. Talk about it flared up after the Augusta National bought land from nearby Augusta Country Club which allowed him to push the box of the 13th tee back.

Historically, with Rae’s Creek running in front of the golf surface, those golfers who were brave enough to hit a second shot from the rough ground on the fairway were often rewarded with an eagle opportunity at the end of their round. However, in recent years athletes have been able to cut corners off the tee and leave themselves with medium and short irons on the green for their second shots. This has resulted in No. 13 being consistently played as one of the easiest holes on the golf course, averaging 4.83 in 2022.

With this extra footage, long irons and woods are likely to be required on the fairway, so the risk factor will be increased to #13.

Augusta National made a similar change to par-5 with a 15th-place finish ahead of the 2022 Masters, and as a result, no heads were made on that hole for the first time since 1966.

In April, Augusta National chairman Fred Ridley was asked if one of golf’s most famous holes would ever change.

“This is something we have certainly considered and will continue to consider,” Ridley said. “Admittedly, and I’ve said this before, the 13th hole doesn’t have the same problems that it has had historically. they are still there, the fact that players are hitting medium and short irons into this hole is not really how it was intended.

“I didn’t want to face the fact that it’s such an iconic hole… So, you probably know, it was kind of a resistance to doing anything. At some point in time, we will probably do it. We just have nothing to say about it right now.”

With the addition of yards at No. 13, this upcoming Masters will set the record for the longest tournament in history with 3,780 yards at the second nine and 7,545 yards at 18 holes.

Mod number 13 isn’t the only change made to inventory ahead of this year’s tournament. Holes #1-5 on the par-3 course have also been redesigned.