The hardest shot at Augusta National? Past champion explains

EVANS, Ga. — Each spring when Augusta National flashes across the television screen, golf fans are greeted with a sense of familiarity. With the club hosting the Masters annually since 1934 (and the Augusta National Women’s Amateur since 2019), there may be no course in the world that fans at home know better than ANGC.

That’s the beauty of returning to the course each spring. With each passing year, the familiarity grows and we know what to expect from every hole.

This familiarity has led to plenty of spirited 19th-hole debates in grill rooms across the country, with Average Joes debating how they’d play the shots the pros play. For a rare few, the dream of playing Augusta National becomes a reality. But for most others, the shots are struck only in their imaginations.

For those of us who never get to play the course, we have to rely on others to live vicariously through their experiences. If that sounds like you, I’ll bet there’s one question you’ve always wondered: Which shot out there is the hardest? At this week’s Augusta National Women’s Amateur, defending champ Lottie Woad revealed her answer.

Augusta National’s hardest shot

There are plenty of candidates that come to mind when thinking about Augusta National’s most difficult shots. The approach shot on No. 5. The tee shot on No. 10. The approach shot on No. 11. The tee shot on No. 18. All have given pros fits from time to time — and all would likely bring a recreational player to their knees.

However, when it comes to the hardest shot of them all, one in particular sticks out to the defending champ.

“The 12th, the par-3,” Woad said. “The wind is usually swirling around there. It’s a pretty small green to hit
anyway, and then you throw that in. I’m pretty happy if I get away with hitting the green.”

Many a Masters contender’s chances has been sunk when their tee shot on the 12th finds Rae’s Creek, and there’s sure to be many more who meet a similar fate. So long as you can make a 3 on the hole, you’re doing quite well.

So, what’s the best strategy for navigating the 12th?

“Kind of just going over the right edge of that bunker,” Woad said. “You shouldn’t really be going at [the pin on the right], so just kind of play for the middle of the green and then hit there and then two-putt.”

Takes notes for your next round at Augusta National — whether that be in real life or just your imagination.