AUGUSTA, Ga. — The iconic par-3 12th at Augusta National produces all manner of recovery shots. Chunk-and-runs from the azaleas behind the green, feathery blasts from the bunker fronting the green, nervy flops from the tee side of Rae’s Creek.
But Max Homa played a shot on 12 in the first round of the 2022 Masters that would have raised the eyebrows of even the most veteran Masters-watchers.
It began — as so many adventures do on this temptress of a hole — with Homa’s tee shot, which he missed short and left. Homa’s ball caught the steep bank that runs from the creek up to the putting surface and bounded into the water. Only his ball didn’t bounce backward; instead, it kicked left toward Hogan Bridge.
That left Homa with two options: drop within two club-lengths of the point where his ball last crossed into the hazard, or drop anywhere along a straight line from the flagstick and the point where his ball last crossed. Option 1 would have left Homa with an awkward uphill chip. Option 2 was also no picnic, but by dropping along that imaginary line on the far side of the creek, Homa could play a lower driving chip while also having more green to work with.
So…yep, option 2 it was.
The resulting shot was — well, not one this observer can remember ever seeing on one of the most famous holes in golf. Homa played from just off the walkway that runs from Hogan Bridge to the green, giving himself an unimpeded look at the full width of the green.
Smart play. He played a nifty, flippy chip that hit the left side of the green and bounced four or five times before stopping four feet from the hole.
When Homa holed the ensuing putt, he had converted a first-round Masters bogey unlike any other. Homa is at one over through 16 holes, six off the lead.
