{"id":413,"date":"2017-03-31T23:28:00","date_gmt":"2017-03-31T23:28:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/staging-a-us-west-2-blog.pxg.cloud\/?p=413"},"modified":"2021-12-27T22:53:01","modified_gmt":"2021-12-27T22:53:01","slug":"a-masters-conversation-with-zach-johnson-charl-schwartzel","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/production-a-us-west-2-blog.pxg.cloud\/the-range\/blog\/a-masters-conversation-with-zach-johnson-charl-schwartzel\/","title":{"rendered":"INSIDE THE ROPES AT AUGUSTA NATIONAL"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

A Masters conversation with champions Zach Johnson<\/a> and Charl Schwartzel <\/p>\n\n\n\n

By Shaun Tolson<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There is an undeniable allure to the Masters. The annual event not only brings together (and celebrates) past and present generations of golf\u2019s elite players, it also fosters respect and admiration for the game itself. As the year\u2019s first major approaches, we sat down with Masters champions Zach Johnson and Charl Schwartzel to get an inside perspective on all things Augusta National, from their favorite memories and pivotal shots to that infamous Par 3 Contest curse. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

How have the Masters and Augusta National changed \u2013 if at all \u2013 since you won your green jacket?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Zach Johnson: <\/strong>Augusta National has become a very difficult driving golf course. There are a lot of tee shots that you have to pay attention to, like holes one and seven, seventeen, and a couple of others. You have to hit a good tee shot. You can\u2019t just bomb it out there. You have to get the ball on the fairway. It\u2019s a very difficult course when you\u2019re not hitting fairways.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Charl Schwartzel: <\/strong>When I won it, I realized that I\u2019ll be able to play that tournament for the rest of my life. Every time that I arrive at Augusta during the week it has to be a different feeling than what the other guys [who haven\u2019t won before] feel. It\u2019s even more special that you\u2019re a part of that history of Augusta and the Masters.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What aspects of your game are well-suited for Augusta National?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

ZJ: <\/strong>My short game and wedge play in particular. A proper spin-controlled shot on the par-5s is critical. The year I won, I played the par-5s 11-under-par. My mental grit also bodes well at a place like Augusta\u2014knowing where not to go is part of the formula for being successful there.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

CS:<\/strong> When I\u2019m playing my best golf, my iron play is normally really good, and the fact that I can hit my irons<\/a> really high\u2014and my natural shape that\u2019s most comfortable is left to right\u2014it allows me to have more control when the ball hits the green than guys who might not be able to play shots as high. The greens at Augusta get very firm, and you really need to be coming in high with left to right spin to give yourself good chances.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Is there a hole\u2014or a specific shot on a particular hole\u2014that you believe will be pivotal to your success in the Masters this year?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

ZJ: <\/strong>There are so many holes at Augusta National where you can have your ball in the fairway, and if the pin is in a certain area it\u2019s a completely different golf hole from the day before. On the par-3 fourth hole, for example, if the pin placement is in the back left or somewhere over the trap, it\u2019s difficult but doable. When the pin is in the front left\u2014and you\u2019re hitting from the back tee box\u2014it\u2019s one of the hardest shots in golf. You cannot hit it right; you\u2019re making bogey at best if you do. You can hit it to the back left and try to two-putt from there, which is really tough; or you can go right at the pin, which is a hard shot because you\u2019ve got a 3-iron or a 4-iron in your hands. The year I won, I actually laid up. I hit to the front of the green, chipped it up there, and made par. However, the hole that stands out, especially on the weekend, is the 12th, and [on that hole] it doesn\u2019t matter where the pin is.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

CS: <\/strong>You have to capitalize on the par 5s, but then you have holes like number four, eleven, and twelve that are very demanding holes. If you play those holes level par for the week, you\u2019ll have a very good chance of competing in the tournament. There\u2019s not much margin for error on those holes. On number eleven, for example, you have to hit a fade into the green but you\u2019ll have a right-to-left lie. If you bail to the left you\u2019re in the water and if you\u2019re on the right side you\u2019re going to make bogey anyways. So either way you have to take on the shot. I really requires a shot that you have to take on and you have to pull off.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Do you have a favorite hole at Augusta National?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

ZJ: <\/strong>It\u2019s definitely number twelve, which goes against the grain that longer is better. A front left pin requires a wedge or 9-iron off the tee, but a back right pin could require a 7-iron. Either way, you\u2019ve got loft in your hands so you can go after the pins. You don\u2019t have to bail, but there are times when I don\u2019t know if I should go after it. There are times when you have to play conservative, but that\u2019s not easy either and that\u2019s what makes it difficult. Commitment is priority number one on that hole. It\u2019s arguably the most beautiful hole that we play.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

CS: <\/strong>The 16th comes to mind just because it can be so dramatic. You don\u2019t have to hit the most precise shot, you can have a little margin for error with the slope on the green. It\u2019s one of those holes that if you\u2019re in contention\u2014and after a par five\u2014you know you can get another birdie. Also, with the amount of people that sit around that hole, the atmosphere is pretty amazing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Some say that winning the par 3 contest on Wednesday is a curse. Win on the nine-hole short course and you can kiss that year\u2019s green jacket goodbye. Do you believe it?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

ZJ: <\/strong>I don\u2019t think it\u2019s a curse. It\u2019s just a stat. The guy who\u2019s won the par 3 hasn\u2019t won the tournament. It\u2019s nothing more than that. Certain guys don\u2019t play in the par 3 contest; but for me, to say that I go out on the par 3 course and don\u2019t try would be incorrect. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

CS: <\/strong>Not really. We have so much fun during the par 3 contest. It\u2019s a great little relaxing way of playing the day before the big build-up. It would be quite unique to change that theory. That\u2019s the way I look at it. My goal would be to win the par 3 contest and the green jacket and give people even more to talk about.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Would the Masters be any easier if it weren\u2019t the first major of the year? <\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

ZJ:<\/strong> I don\u2019t think it matters. You know where it is on the schedule, and you prepare accordingly. Everyone\u2019s preparation is different. To prepare for majors I typically like to play the week before, but I don\u2019t play the week before the Masters. We play the same course every year, so I feel like I can prepare properly for it at home. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

CS:<\/strong> No, I don\u2019t think so. The aura of that tournament\u2014the stature of it and the importance of it and the history of it\u2014it doesn\u2019t matter where you put it in the year. It could be in December and it\u2019s going to make the guys feel the same.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There is talk that the 13th hole could be lengthened, maybe as early as next year. How do you feel about that?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

ZJ:<\/strong> What they\u2019ve done is just lengthened the tee boxes, which provides them with more options. Can some guys still get there in two? Absolutely. It probably won\u2019t be bad for me because I\u2019m all for laying up. So I\u2019m not opposed to it, but I\u2019m not for change, either. My guess is if they do change it, it will look like it has belonged there all along.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

CS: <\/strong>For the shorter players it\u2019s beneficial because they\u2019re going to lay up anyway; and it will take the advantage away from the long hitters who want to cut the corner. Guys will still go for the green in two, but now they\u2019re going at it with a 3-iron or a 5-wood off a banked slope that doesn\u2019t give you many options. And we professional golfers think we can do anything, so you\u2019ll see more guys making sixes and changes of score happening on that hole. It would be more dramatic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What do you love most about Augusta National?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

ZJ: <\/strong>August National is the most predictable golf course that we\u2019ll play all year. It\u2019s predictable because it\u2019s so pure. It\u2019s one of the highest compliments that I can give a facility. You know that if you hit your shot and land it here it will end up there; and if you hit your putt on line it will go in. In other words, what you see is what you get. It\u2019s just a matter of execution, but the execution is the hard part.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

CS: <\/strong>Those dinners that we go to as champions are really something you can\u2019t explain to people. That is when you realize how much a part of history you are. To be surrounded there by all the guys that I never even saw play and to listen to their stories of the way they won back in the day\u2014and just to spend time with them\u2014is something that\u2019s irreplaceable. But the best answer would be everything. From being the Masters and playing a round on the course to the champions\u2019 dinner we have every Tuesday night and driving down Magnolia lane\u2014it\u2019s all very special.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

We sat down with Masters champions Zach Johnson and Charl Schwartzel to get an inside perspective on all things Augusta National.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":414,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[34],"tags":[35,41],"acf":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/production-a-us-west-2-blog.pxg.cloud\/the-range\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/413"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/production-a-us-west-2-blog.pxg.cloud\/the-range\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/production-a-us-west-2-blog.pxg.cloud\/the-range\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/production-a-us-west-2-blog.pxg.cloud\/the-range\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/production-a-us-west-2-blog.pxg.cloud\/the-range\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=413"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/production-a-us-west-2-blog.pxg.cloud\/the-range\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/413\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3472,"href":"https:\/\/production-a-us-west-2-blog.pxg.cloud\/the-range\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/413\/revisions\/3472"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/production-a-us-west-2-blog.pxg.cloud\/the-range\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/414"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/production-a-us-west-2-blog.pxg.cloud\/the-range\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=413"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/production-a-us-west-2-blog.pxg.cloud\/the-range\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=413"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/production-a-us-west-2-blog.pxg.cloud\/the-range\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=413"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}