Augusta National proved to be a head-scratching, shoulder-slumping, mutter-under-your breath kind of golf course on Thursday, with the field posting a collective 74.5 stroke average on Day 1 of the Masters (compared to 71.41 last November). The high number is thanks largely to dry weather over the previous several days allowing fairways and greens to firm up well beyond what was seen in last year’s one-off fall Masters, or in recent April editions at Augusta.
For those players battered by the course conditions—only 12 players broke par on Thursday—they can take some solace, however, in the fact that Mother Nature might have their backs the next few days. According to the Masters official weather bulletin, there is at least a 40-percent chance of showers the next two days and a 30-percent chance early Sunday.
The wet weather could begin as early as Friday afternoon, according to the report, with the worst of it possibly arriving late Saturday. The 60-percent chance of rain and/or thunderstorms potentially would disrupt the third round, and might even get Masters officials to consider moving up tee times to avoid cramming too much action into Sunday. Of course, any moisture has the potential to soften up the course, making the greens more receptive to approach shots and potentially setting up more birdie opportunities.
Wet weather and the Masters are often synonymous. According to club records, rain/weather has fallen during the tournament 45 of the 84 playings of the event. Since 2000, it’s happened 11 times, including the last two years. Last November, Thursday rain delayed the start of play by almost three hours, forcing the first round to carry over into Friday and the second round to spill into the weekend. In 2019, thunderstorms in the area delayed play during Friday’s second round, and the threat of inclement weather on Sunday caused tournament officials to move up tee times and play a two-tee start ahead of Tiger Woods’ memorable victory run.