In 2005, playing the final round of the Masters Tournament, Tiger Woods created magic on Redbud. Off the tee, he hit the ball right at the edge of the fairway, very close to the rough. A barrage of patrons patiently watched on as Woods was reading the green before getting ready with a wedge. Everyone knew a chip was on the way, one that might help him save the game and go into the playoffs. But what actually happened surpassed everyone’s imagination, maybe even that of Tiger Woods.
Woods hit an excellent chip that landed on the green and caught pace to roll over under the cup. That’s when it changed trajectory and was slowing down, heading towards the hole. It stopped! At the edge of the cup on the 16th, the ball paused as the patrons held their breath patiently waiting to see what happens next. Records showed that the ball stood still for 1.8 seconds, and so did the world. Time slowed down incredibly before the Nike-branded ball of the GOAT rolled further, showing the logo and sinking for one of the most iconic golf shots in history.
Former Creative Director of Nike, Hal Curtis, shared how the famous sports brand turned that 1.8 seconds into their most successful advertising campaign with Tiger Woods. For the world, the story has been entrenched in their minds for 20 years. Augusta National also kept it alive as they kept placing the hole in the same spot for the final round of the Masters Tournaments since then. But after 20 years, officials of Augusta National have finally given up and changed the position of the cup for the 2025 Masters Tournament as a nod to the 50th Anniversary of the 1975 Masters Win of Jack Nicklaus.
The Masters official account tweeted all the positions of the holes a few minutes ago. Not much later, they also shared the specific location of the hole on Redbud. To everyone’s surprise, the cup was placed much further to the top right of the green instead of the traditional center, where Woods hit his iconic chip shot. Interestingly, that is where Jack Nicklaus played on the 16th in the final round of his fifth win.
A historic hole location on No. 16. #themasters pic.twitter.com/K4324Fx4yC
— The Masters (@TheMasters) April 13, 2025
As anyone would expect, the patrons were shocked to learn about the change. They bombarded the comments to express their displeasure over Augusta National’s decision. Let’s see what they said.
Digital patrons furious at Augusta National for changing position of Tiger Woods’s iconic hole
Tiger Woods’s chip on Redbud is etched in the history books. Netizens were never going to be happy that Augusta National was trying to rub it off. One of them said, “Yea….not sure I like this call. Traditional Sunday placement is better.” The sudden change after following the tradition for 20 years caught them by surprise. It’s not like the ground’s authorities hinted at making the change before revealing the changes. It was bound to receive a negative reaction.
The course and tournament officials have been facing a lot of heat recently. They faced a lot of criticism when the first-round broadcast of the 2025 Masters Tournament was badly scheduled, leading to the patrons missing out on a lot of the first few hours of the live action. On that note, one of the fans sarcastically pointed out, “They saw all of the negative feedback, and they had to post this.” They are suggesting that Augusta National chose the worst possible way to respond to all the criticism by infuriating the fans even further.
One of the fans had a little more faith in the decision-makers of the golf course. But it seems that they have lost all hope as they commented, “You guys never screw up but let me tell ya that you screwed up big time.” Seems that despite all the abrupt changes they have seen recently, the position of the hole on Redbud ticked them off the most.
Interestingly, someone pointed out how the new position also has a bit of history attached to it. They stated, “In honor of Jack on 16! Epic pin placement !” The tweet shared by The Masters X account also provided specific details about it. Jack Nicklaus won his fifth green jacket in 1975 when the cup on Redbud was placed in the exact same position.
There was another intriguing detail about the new position of the cup that one of the fans observed. They assume that Augusta National is trying to push the LIV Golf pro out of contention by changing the position of the cup at Redbud. Their comment read “Hole location setup for a Rory fade and not Bryson’s draw…. Interesting.” Apparently, Bryson DeChambeau has been nullified on the 16th hole while Rory McIlroy has been weaponized by this small change.
What are your thoughts on Augusta National placing the cup out of position from Tiger Woods’s iconic chip in 2005? Share your views in the comments section.
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