The Genius Trick of Augusta National's 12th Hole | The Game Plan

The Genius Trick of Augusta National's 12th Hole | The Game Plan | Golf Digest

Рет қаралды 1,045,343

Жыл бұрын

Lurking beneath the beauty of Augusta's iconic 12th Hole lies an ingenious trap that tests the limits of players' discipline and smarts. Year after year, players see that Sunday pin on the far right side of the green. Every Masters, somebody tries to chase it and they pay the price. Which begs the question: What is the RIGHT way to play the 12th hole at Augusta National? What is...the Game Plan?
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Пікірлер: 343

@GreenDistantStar Жыл бұрын

Excellent content. Crisp commentary, some true archival footage, and an imaginative concept. More of these, please.

@Stitch-007 Жыл бұрын

You don’t joke around with that high class voice 😂 that’s for sure

@Sword4000 Жыл бұрын

@@Stitch-007 He has to be putting that voice on surely

@jarry6849 Жыл бұрын

Yeah should help you during your next round at Augusta

@pmdwyer274 Ай бұрын

Funny!@@jarry6849

@FNigslol Ай бұрын

What a stupid comment

@ericknopik2852 Жыл бұрын

Ken Venturi said it best about the tee shot on #12 on Sunday: “You can’t win the Masters with this shot, but you sure can lose it” #12 is one of the greatest par 3 holes in golf, without question.

@andrewcarter7503 Жыл бұрын

Excellent explanation. Shows how much thought goes into designing, and then playing, golf holes. My plan? Lay up short of the stream. Duff my second shot into the stream. Next shot over the back of the green. Chip close, two putt. An easy 7 🙂

@samanthony8121 Жыл бұрын

Man that is painfully accurate.

@jacknone1564 Жыл бұрын

Highly accurate. On a good day, make the front bunker, chip over the green (in the air) into the back bunker. Out of the sand with 20’ to putt. Three putts for a 6.

@cartergibb Жыл бұрын

But that chip that you put close keeps you going

@adr2567 Жыл бұрын

Mate bang on! Drop shot may even go into the far side bunker potentially.

@TheWiryWoodchuck Ай бұрын

what about over the back into the flowers?

@TjBruce817 Жыл бұрын

The quintessential "sucker pin" if there ever was one. Evil genius course design. Nice break down.

@lawbinson Жыл бұрын

This was fantastic. So many great pieces of history, design, and game management well presented. Well done LKD and team

@braydennazarian6615 Жыл бұрын

great video. kept me interested the entire time and I felt like I learned a lot despite already being familiar with Augusta. PLEASE do more of these!

@thegreatescape07 Жыл бұрын

I don't even watch or play golf and I couldn't stop watching this video.

@jeffreycooley2032 Жыл бұрын

This was a perfect description of how such a short hole can create so much consternation, and intrigue. It's no wonder why this is often the hole that wins, or LOSES the Masters seemingly every year.

@nathanavery4681 Жыл бұрын

You won't win the Masters at 12, but you can certainly lose it there

@SuperChris729 Ай бұрын

Add in the swirling wind for added pleasure

@wittenberg5 Жыл бұрын

Brilliant. Examples like this demonstrate that elite golf is not all about "natural talent". It takes planning, strategy and self discipline.

@jamesabar207 Жыл бұрын

True that! Knowing ones game and how to score is key.

@scottbadley8860 Ай бұрын

@paulodoherty1712 2 ай бұрын

I loved Morikawa’s strategy drawing of a line bisecting the 12th green into left & right… with an all-caps “NO” for the right side.

@Real28 Жыл бұрын

I love the data showing what we know Tiger could do so well: stay out of stupid mistakes.

@claytonberg721 Жыл бұрын

To my memory Nichlaus never chased that pin on sunday either.

@paulodoherty1712 2 ай бұрын

Tiger once ran up a 10 on the 12th hole

@virtualbown Жыл бұрын

Has to be the best course management / course design video I've ever seen.

@rlevitta Жыл бұрын

Jack Nicklaus, who played Augusta pretty well, said take aim at the trap in front and take your 3.

@cptkent Жыл бұрын

Additionally, the slope on the right compounds the problem. The water may be 20ft short of the putting surface, but any shot not landing on the green rolls back. It’s essentially ‘water to the edge of green’ as you play it. Excellent video.

@TheToledoTrumpton Жыл бұрын

I really like this kind of instruction. It defines the problem, and leaves it up to all of us to deal with it, rather than just telling us what to do. I really can't tell you how much I appreciated and needed this. As an old golfer, I rarely see something that I feel improves my approach to golf but this video did that. Liked and subscribed, and thank-you.

@CarlVandenberg Жыл бұрын

As a former PGA teaching professional and someone who's watched the Masters for 50 years this analysis is spot on. Those who have lost the Masters on this hole either broke the golden rule (going after that right pin), hit a poor shot, or both. I'd say that even if you are a couple shots behind on Sunday going into this hole, this is not the hole to try and make up that ground.

@ruschernitsyn7391 Жыл бұрын

Perfect guide for my next round in Augusta 👌🏻😂

@radioactive9861 Жыл бұрын

Thank you for this video. It taught me a lot more about how to look at golf. I'll never be a pro, but any time you learn something in life is a good time.

@TeddyCavachon Жыл бұрын

I didn’t start to understand golf hole design strategies until learning to shape shots after reading Nicklaus’ “Golf My Way” in the mid-1980s. When a green is angled right / or left \ relative the fairway it will normally give the player with the ability to shape shots an advantage over one who can only hit straight. A good analogy is the green direction as a runway you are trying to land a plane on. Shaping the shot into the longest dimension of the green increases the odds of keeping the ball on the green after it lands. The ideal situation for the player would be the hole places at the end of the “runway” with the green sloping uphill towards it. The 12th green shape favors a fade for a right handed player except when the pin is placed on the right below landing area., Something to realize about shaping shots (if you’ve never done it) is the rationale isn’t about the shape of the shot in the air but influencing the direction the ball bounces and rolls after landing. For a right hand player a fade will bounce and then roll to the right after landing and a draw will bounce and roll to the left. What makes the Sunday pin placement on the right so difficult is the left-to-right and back-to-front slope towards the hole . The hole works better for lefties because their fades will bounce and roll into the upslope after landing. So why don’t the right handed players approach the hole with the same shot shape; putting left-to-right draw spin on the ball? Trevino said it best: “You can talk to a fade but a draw doesn’t listen.” There almost no limit to how much the face of a club can be opened to hit a fade/cut shot to the point where you can get so much spin on the ball it will move 90° to the right after landing. But due to the fact the club face must be de-lofted and must strike the inside of the ball to create left-to-right draw spin the ball has a lower trajectory and will more difficult to control predictably.

@angkec Жыл бұрын

Very informative. I've always wondered about this hole after watching Tiger's last win where the two other guys all went into the water while Tiger took the long putt to catch up. It wasn't obvious why the pin seekers on Sunday was so prone to hit into the stream.

@chrisscott8604 Жыл бұрын

Absolutely LOVE this type of video! Gives such great insight as to what makes a hole so challenging and opens us high handicappers up to game-management thought processes we can implement on our own rounds. Real question - why don't pros hit draws into the 12th if that allows for better dispersion patterns?

@thegoldenbear1811 Жыл бұрын

I remember Spieth talking about this during his 2016 Masters. Usually pros hit fades because it allows for more spin on the greens, but as described in the video, carries more risks. Draw has less spin and is less likely to hold the green, but really is the safer call.

@goodnyte Жыл бұрын

Also technically the dispersion pattern for a draw will be the same, it will still produce a diagonal dispersion with pulls going farther than pushes, draws will simply introduce more danger as you have to take it OVER the hazard. As Jack Nicklaus said “Don’t ever aim the ball into trouble” so taking a draw to this hole will simply add another possibly punishing element.

@JZ-xu3vg Жыл бұрын

it might be worth it just to hit far left or right of the hole #1 priority is don't hit it in the water. there's so much room on the right and you have the option to hit short left knock down for a safe shot. finally its only a 150-160 yard shot... i mean bombs.. how can you miss.

@whatthe3504 Жыл бұрын

doesnt make much sense for a right handed golfer to hit a draw to a right positioned pin. its great for left pins where it may be a further carry if you aimed straight at it and you can start the ball to the shorter part of the green and have it release towards the whole.

@gainothing Жыл бұрын

most of them aim center of the green (bunkers) or left of the green even when the pin on the right so they use fade to stop the ball quickly.. if they miss the green its more easy up and down.. if they aim to the right and miss the green they will be punished cause slope on the right green and around the green very steep.. its not birdie hole for them and continue to the next hole

@etiennenikles9623 Жыл бұрын

That was suuuper interesting to hear those insights and the theory behind it. Could we please get more of this type of content in the future?

@somethingelse2814 Жыл бұрын

Great video. I just had a new idea about golf strategy. As an avid golfer for 20 years it's been a while since i've had a truly novel idea. Thanks for the inspiration

@TonyBongo869 Жыл бұрын

I appreciated this analytical look at what seems to be a simple shot, thanks

@johncassani6780 Жыл бұрын

This was the one blemish on the card for Jack Nicklaus when he roared back in 1986 with a 30 on the back nine. He was 7 under for the final 10 holes (he birdied the ninth), with a bogey on this little hole. I think this is, consistently, the toughest short par 3 in golf. The 7th at Pebble Beach is very tough if the wind is howling, and the 17th at TPC Sawgrass is an island, but with a pretty big green. This is an amazing hole.

@dorothygale1104 10 ай бұрын

The 12th at August is a difficult hole even if there is zero wind. The 7th at Pebble Beach is not at all difficult with no wind or light wind, as designing it to be difficult in zero or light wind would make it unplayable in higher wind. I have never seen the 12th at Augusta be unplayable due to higher winds; difficult with wind for sure, but not unplayable.

@dwightbrown Жыл бұрын

The best definition of my favorite and the most fascinating hole in golf.

@bradmiller9121 11 ай бұрын

I used my gps program to determine that, in 2019, Molinari, Koepka, Finau, and Poulter all hit their balls within 4 yards of the same distance that Tiger did. Also don't forget that McKenzie came to golf design as a master camouflage designer for the Brits in WW1.

@Doggydoc Жыл бұрын

Mind boggling. Please more and more and more of this content.

@johngriffiths5682 Жыл бұрын

Loved this, brilliant video. Well done, and thanks for sharing.

@MaartenAnna Жыл бұрын

Best explanation I've seen. So, right handed players chasing the pin, have a better chance drawing the ball, due to the dispersion pattern.

@schlebre Жыл бұрын

Do more of these. This was great!

@unixtool Ай бұрын

Very well done sir. Haven’t enjoyed a commentary for quite sometime, I really appreciated yours.👍

@TheJJZeeman Жыл бұрын

I knew next to nothing of golf... Now I know a little bit more. Thank you!

@vjp724 Жыл бұрын

Wow, amazing video and information. Will definitely enjoy watching the Masters even more now . Thank you!

@bendelatore451 Ай бұрын

This video was well worth the watch. Hope yall make more like this!

@danielwiggins4960 15 күн бұрын

Nicklaus bogied 12 on Sunday in ‘86. Jack once said “Sometimes I get there, and my hands just shake.” Don’t forget the swirling wind. It’s at the “bottom” of the course. The wind can blow in a different direction at the tee box and green than at the top of the ball flight. Per SI, wind can make a difference of 4 club selections. Only 3 aces in the history of the Masters at 12: 1947, 1959, and 1988. Amazing hole.

@The_YouTube_Critic Жыл бұрын

Great info. I'll have to remember it when I play Augusta.

@jimgray3346 Жыл бұрын

This video barely mentioned the swirling winds caused by the intersection of two separate wind paths over the course. They meet near the 12th and make the hole what it is.

@jackrollins2847 Жыл бұрын

As a diehard golfer, ive always known that the 12th hole was hard because of the dispersion patterns of the right-handed dominated field, but I thought it would be too hard to explain in such a short video like this. WELL DONE!

@michaelpitman9491 Ай бұрын

Never broke it down this way about dispersion patterns. This may help me on the crap courses I play.

@HolySoliDeoGloria Жыл бұрын

Great video! Minor editing error in the graphic at 4:20-check the apostrophes.

@daved3494 Жыл бұрын

That was fascinating! Great analysis for mortals. Thank you.

@Mr.M1STER Жыл бұрын

I love this stuff. I will never look at the 12th hole the same again after watching this.

@Partyforjohnson Жыл бұрын

Make more videos like this. Everything you have been asking for will come.

@scottfawcett3290 Жыл бұрын

Great stuff, Luke! Thanks for letting me be involved! #DECADE

@bw6596 26 күн бұрын

Awesome series. As many of these as possible please

@DefenderTIM Жыл бұрын

I'll never need to know this, but I'll always be glad that I do now.

@donovanreimer2324 Жыл бұрын

What a terrific analysis. Easy to follow and concise. New subscriber here!

@_CGH803_ Жыл бұрын

Absolutely beautiful video. Well done.

@PYGolf Жыл бұрын

Wow guys well done, what a video! More!!

@TexasGolfer Жыл бұрын

Just to close a small gap in the video. Right handed players can flip the dispersion pattern to be more like the left handed fade players by hitting a draw. But, a draw could also invite distance control issues. I am sure Tiger and Colin know this and that is why they take the straight ball to the left side of the green. Its just not worth the risk when there are other pins to chase.