Masters Monday: Solar Eclipse, Tiger Sighting And Course Changes
Masters Monday: Solar Eclipse, Tiger Sighting And Course Changes
Notes on an early morning Woods practice round suggesting he's here to contend. Plus, the solar eclipse, some course (change) observations and Quotables.
Augusta produced a resplendent Monday for players to test out a course already nearing peak tournament speeds and firmness. Yet even with the warm, sunny weather it took a while for players to wake from their slumbers to make their way up Magnolia Lane, leaving the morning spotlight to Tiger Woods and Will Zalatoris for a first look at Amen Corner. Today’s Quad from Augusta includes a report on what I saw of those two, the solar eclipse, intriguing course tweaks to those of us looking for No Life certification, the dreadful forecast update for Thursday’s first round and some of the best player quotes. Fore, please!
Tiger Out Early With Zalatoris
The patrons who set 4 a.m. wake up calls to be the first on site received a pleasant surprise with the early 10th tee twosome featuring Tiger Woods and Will Zalatoris. For a surprisingly long time, they were the only players on the course. Woods gave the early faithful some entertainment with an approach on No. 11 to within five feet, a mere 10 feet on the 12th and reached the 13th with a long iron that created the first roar of 2024. The five-time champion hit several pitches and long putts on every green and looked fully engaged walking alongside new looper Lance Bennett.
“He played great today,” said Zalatoris. “He outdrove me a couple times so there was some chirping going on. He looks great. He's moving as well as he can be.”
Woods’ gait looked smooth and he even inquired about Zalatoris’ putter. Oh to have a thought bubble…
Woods meets with the press Tuesday at 11 a.m.
He is expected to continue his policy of not playing the Par 3 Contest while he’s still an active player.
The Solar Eclipse
The big moon-blocks sun duel felt like a bit of an “eh” moment at Augusta National. Standards are high here. And with so many practice round patrons making their first visit, they were understandably far more enthalled by the course, landscape and overall experience.
Down at Amen Corner when 76% “obscuration” occurred, a solid five-minute window of zero wind did seem noteworthy. The expected darkness felt more like a light layer of smog given the beige tint and soft light. And for those wondering if squirrels started appearing and red birds stopped singing? No luck. But two Canada geese did sit on the Rae’s Creek bank until the weirdness ended.
Patrons could view through Masters-branded eclipse glasses featuring detailed instructions that would have made Clifford Roberts proud. And they will prove to be charming one-off keepsake given that this is the last April eclipse of our lifetimes.
I’m sure you’ve already seen better than my capture of the big moment:
Course Observations
With the updated forecast showing rain and a wind event in the cards for Friday, I won’t dare project a winning score (sorry degenerates). But Augusta National is in sublime condition. The course is certainly drier and faster than normal for a Masters Monday. Presumably this is in anticipation of more rain (we’ll get to the grim forecast farther down this edition).
But after two walks around the course, it seems the Lords were busier than we realized this summer. Besides re-grassing of three greens and some subtle tweaks to accommodate the usual stuff such as changing mowing patterns and modern speeds, they also went searching for more usable hole locations. Also, a wood chipper may have gotten some much needed usage on the 7th and 15th holes (but that’s pure speculation!)
A few things observed Monday: