How will the weather affect the 2020 Masters?

This week’s temperature predictions for the mid-70s to the low-80s should make the Masters look like April, ending months of guesswork and speculation by players, fans and the media about Augusta National Golf Club playing in the cold.

Since Augusta National Chairman Fred S. Ridley announced dates scheduled for this year due to COVID-19, golfers have shared their experiences on the course this fall.

From champions like Tiger Woods, who said he would play in the fall of years with major course changes, to rookie Sebastian Muñoz, who said he canceled his round last November because of an overnight temperature change, players offered their thoughts.

“I played there in November,” said Woods at the Zozo Championship in October. “And the few times I played in November, it was the same. It was cold, the ball doesn’t go very far. ”

Aikens Kevin Kisner and Augusta State alumnus Patrick Reed both predicted the course would play longer in cooler temperatures and wetter weather.

What are the normal Masters temperatures?

Of the approximately 335 days on which tournament golf was played in Augusta, more than 60% had a high temperature between 70 and 85 degrees, according to the National Weather Service. But there have been rounds in the extremes that affect the game of the course.

Horton Smith won the inaugural tournament in March 1934 with a maximum temperature of 47, while the night low for the first round of Zach Johnson’s 2007 triumph was 26 degrees.

The most common temperature in Augusta on days when Masters rounds were played is 79 degrees. Friday’s forecast for that temperature would be round 23 in Masters history for that number.

So this is an unusual November?

Play alongside the Masters? Not really in terms of high temperatures. In the last 10 years the maximum values ​​in Augusta were mostly between 60 and 80 degrees on the same days.

The biggest difference in this year’s forecast is in the night lows. According to Accuweather, the forecasts for this week are said to be in the 60s and 70s.

For the past decade, November lows have ranged from the low 30s to the high 50s, causing temperature differences of 30 degrees or more from early morning to late afternoon.

This would have created a huge difference in playing conditions for golfers teeing off on the second nine and playing against Amen Corner early Thursday or Friday morning.

Isn’t there rain in the previous one?

Storms and showers are included in the forecast for Wednesday and Thursday of this week, expanding players’ predictions for a longer course due to wetter conditions.

AUGUSTA WEATHER

It rained during 44 Masters tournaments – from one-day showers that didn’t interrupt play, to long delays, to all-day washouts like 1973 that resulted in a first Masters – three-pointers starting with two tees.

30 Masters rounds were postponed or postponed due to weather or darkness – a residual effect of the players affected by the weather.

What about the wind?

Experienced players look at the flags on the main scoreboard to see which way the wind is blowing from the first tee.

The forecasts for this week on windfinder.com show changing winds from northeast to northwest of 2-3 miles per hour for Thursday, followed by predominantly northwest winds with gusts of up to 20 miles per hour for the remainder of the tournament.

“If you are able to get the north wind at this time of year, it can be awfully difficult and long, and very different from what we normally play in April,” Woods said in October, a sentiment shared by Reed and Kisner was confirmed.

“So every November I beat 4-irons in first place because it plays against the wind and it doesn’t matter,” said Kisner.

But a northwest wind has proven helpful in the past for the smaller players by setting the pitch against the long bombers.

“You have some of the longer holes in the wind and you also neutralized the par 5 on the back nine at 13 and 15.” Furyk told The Augusta Chronicle in 2010. “(The wind) neutralizes the field a little and gives ( short to medium hours) an advantage. ”

The evidence Furyk said is provided by Mike Weir in 2003 and Zach Johnson in 2007. Both are medium-length players who struggle to make the par 5 in two at Augusta National even in the most favorable wind conditions, Furyk said.

And the tropical weather on the news?

The path of Tropical Storm Eta is too early to predict, although it is expected to be off the west coast of Florida on Friday.

High winds and hurricanes were part of the masters from the start. Hotel financier J. Perry Stolz’s plans to demolish the old farmhouse on Berckman’s property came to an end when a devastating hurricane wiped out Miami in 1926.

Proud’s finances were ruined and Fruitland Nurseries returned to the market where Bobby Jones found it as the place to build his ideal course.