EVANS, Ga. — There’s a lot of talk about trees these days in northeast Georgia. Specifically, the trees lining fairways and towering over greens at the region’s big-time golf courses.
The most famous of these, of course, is Augusta National. The loblolly pines that line the perimeter serve as a curtain separating the outside world from the club. And the pines that live inside the grounds are the most famous of them all. Heck, one of them was so prominently in play that a certain former president (unsuccessfully) lobbied to have it removed.
Those pines have taken a beating in recent years. First, during the 2023 Masters, a storm system rolled through during play and downed several pines near the 17th tee. More recently, Hurricane Helene battered the Augusta area and uprooted many more of the towering timbers.
“The loss of a few trees is definitely noticeable,” said four-time major champion Rory McIlroy.
Augusta National isn’t the only course in the area reconciling with the loss of familiar foliage. Fifteen miles up Washington Road in nearby Evans, Ga., Champions Retreat is dealing with the fallout of Helene as well. And with the ladies on property this week for the first two rounds of the Augusta National Women’s Amateur, the topic of trees is once again talking center stage.
“The trees being gone is certainly a lot different,” said 2024 ANWA runner-up Bailey Shoemaker. “It’s a little bit of an adjustment.”
After Helene rumbled through the Augusta area in late September, the results were “catastrophic,” according to Champions Retreat Director of Golf Mike Rymer. By his estimate, thousands of trees were uprooted and strew about in the aftermath of the storm. When he arrived to survey the damage shortly after Helene left town, he estimated the course would be closed for six months.
Thankfully, that estimate did not prove to be accurate, and the course recovered in time to host the one of the most prestigious events in amateur golf. But that doesn’t mean the scars of the storm are hidden. Walking the course this week, there are still root balls and stumps tilted on their sides in the shrubbery surrounding the property.
Champions also lost its most famous tree in the storm. The natural oak, which used to stand right in the middle of the 4th fairway, was coined the “Broccoli Tree” and forced players to play around it for a look at the green. However, thanks to the whipping winds of Helene, the oak no longer serves as an obstacle for ANWA competitors.
“Hole 4, that giant tree is out of the way,” said 2022 ANWA champ Anna Davis. “I can say I’m pretty happy about it. I know they’re probably not too happy about it, but that hole is hard.”
Teenage sensation Asterisk Talley agrees: “Those are like, the trees that made this course hard,” she said. “The course is so open now, and it’s so much more fun.”
Her fellow competitors likely agree. During the opening round of this edition of ANWA, the scoring average for the field was just about level par at 72.02. That mark is over 2.5 strokes easier than the historic opening-round scoring average at Champions Retreat, and over half a stroke easier than last year’s mark of 72.6.
“You can hit driver off those holes more comfortably,” said Megha Ganne, who fired a tournament-record round of 63 on Wednesday. “I think the course is playing at least a stroke easier.”
While it’s true that Champions Retreat as a whole played substantially easier than historical averages, the 4th hole — former site of the Broccoli Tree — actually played very much in line with historical averages during Round 1. There are still plenty of teeth left, trees or not.
In 2024, the final year of the Broccoli Tree era, the scoring average on the hole was 4.264, good for second-hardest on the course. In 2023, it was 4.2, making it the fourth-hardest on the course. The three previous years, the scoring average was a bit more inflated — but the hole was always one of the four most difficult on the course, indicating the setup was more difficult for the entire course. On Wednesday, the scoring average was 4.23, ranking as the second-hardest on the course.
“It makes the hole easier,” said defending champ Lottie Woad. “The drive used to be really difficult. You kind of had to hit it down the right, but now it’s so wide. So it’s definitely an easier hole.”
Maybe, Lottie, even if it still proved plenty hard on Wednesday. Time will tell. Trees, like course records, can stand for decades and fall in an instant.
Now they’ll play on.
