Brennans Caddy Report-The Masters

When you think of the first week of April on the PGA Tour there is only one tournament that comes to mind and that happens to be The Masters. The 2007 Majors are officially under way and there is no better place to start than here in Augusta, GA.  I have mentioned it before, but if you ever get the chance to see the course you must go.   Television does not show just how neat this place is or how much elevation there really is.  It is one of the hilliest courses we play.  The entire Masters experience is one of a kind and for those of you who have witnessed it, I am sure you will agree.
 
The one great thing about this course is that no matter how many times you play practice rounds you can always learn something.  The key to the golf course is the greens and more importantly positioning of your ball on the greens.  This course is known for its severe slopes and speed.  You need to make sure that your ball lands on the proper side of the hole in order to make your putts easier, and to make your chip count when you miss the green.  The general slope on the course is to the creek in front of 12 green, meaning the grain all goes that way. You can really see a difference when putting down grain to putting into the grain, the speed varies quite significantly. They say at Augusta National that there is no grain, but I know when you ask the club caddies who have worked here for 30 plus years you will get a different answer.
 
The week of majors always feel a bit longer for myself and all caddies because everyone wants to get in a few extra rounds. Usually people like to play extra rounds because of the unfamiliarity of the course but at the Masters it is because everyone loves playing here. We got to town on Sunday and Mike worked on his game for a while with his instructors Mike Bennett and Andy Plummer. After a little tune up, Mike and I went out on the back nine of the course to work on Mike's short game. It was nice to be out there when the course was quiet to get some work done.

On Monday, we played 18 holes with Mike's good friend Dean Wilson and had a great time. Mike and Dean get along very well so it was nice to take our time and play as a twosome. It was a five and a half hour round, which is very slow for practice rounds but they got a lot of work in and got a good feel for the course. The one negative about trying to work on your putting during practice rounds is that the speed of the greens is never the same as tournament time. This is the one tournament where the course undergoes a lot of changes on Wednesday night.  For example, they shave down around the greens and make the greens much faster.
 
Tuesday was a little bit shorter as we played 9 holes with Dean again and got some work done on the range and chipping green. I know that Mike is really confident with his game and really hasn't needed to grind too much on his game this week. The tournament itself takes a toll on your mind and body, so being fresh going into the event is very important. I think that is one thing that experience will do for you. You see a lot of guys playing 18 holes everyday and by the time Thursday comes they are already feeling tired. Wednesday is going to be much the same as Tuesday with 9 holes practice round and then the famous par three which happens in the afternoon. Mike has his nephew Chris caddying for him during the par three so that should be a thrill for him.
 
One of the fun things that happens this week is that Mike rents a house for his family and friends to stay at.  There is always some great dinners hosted by Steve Bennett who was Mikes golf professional growing up. With Mike's dad, brothers and some good friends from Sarnia in town, it's always fun going to the house and hanging out with the crew.
 
The course this year is really no different from last year. They have added a few yards to the front of both the eleventh and fifteenth tees so that they can make the holes a bit shorter if it's needed.  However, don't expect that to happen very often. I can see them maybe moving the tee up on 15 on Sunday so that it may give guys a little bit more of a chance to go for it and create some excitement.  The real difference is the lack of rain that they have had here and how fast the course is playing. The fairways are pretty firm and the greens are going to be firm and fast, something we haven't seen here in a while. The course should stay dry as the weather looks pretty good the rest of the week.  It is going to get a little colder but not much rain, so it should make for some exciting viewing as I know everyone likes to see balls rolling all over the place.
 
I am really looking forward to getting things going this week and getting on a roll. I know that I have said it for a while but I really believe that Mike is very close to getting on a hot streak with some good consistent play and what better place to start than here! Hope everyone has a great week watching the television and for those really interested go to masters.org.  They have some great live video. Have a great week and hopefully next week I can submit a special report after a special week!

Thanks for reading,

Brennan Little