The Augusta National Golf Club was fonded by Bobby Jones and Clifford Roberts. It opened in 1932 and has been has been home to the prestigious Masters Tournament since 1934. Situated in Augusta Georgia, the course is one of the most well known courses in the world, not to mention one of the most stunning too. The course is located on land that, once upon a time, used to be a fruit tree nursery.

A Beautiful Sight to Behold

Sixty one large magnolia trees line the road from the entrance gate to the clubhouse. This is Magnolia Lane - it's 330 yards long and it dates back to the late 1850s. The Augusta national golf club is full of beautiful trees, flowers and shrubs. Every hole on this stunning course has been given the name of a tree or a shrub that can be found on that particular hole. In the its early days it stood out from other golf courses due to the small number of bunkers it contained.

Changes to the Course

Course architects have made various design changes to Augusta over the years. More bunkers have been built on the course and the number of contours on the greens was reduced when the type of grass on the greens was changed in 1981 from Bermuda grass to Bent grass which provided a faster playing surface. More trees have been placed on the course and also more rough areas have been created. The greens at the Augusta course had a long tradition of being made from Bermuda grass.

Fans of Augusta are probably familiar with the big oak tree that is located on the course side of the Augusta clubhouse and is thought to be between 145 and 150 years of age. The Eisenhower tree is a Loblolly Pine which is situated on the 17th hole of the Augusta national golf club course.

Historians of the course claim that the tree was hit with a golf ball so many times by President Eisenhower that he recommend that they remove the tree form the course completely. The chairman of the golf course at the time did not want to have to dismiss the recommendation of President Eisenhower but he also didn't want to get rid of the tree and so he decided the best thing to do would be to adjourn the meeting.

Ike's Pond was also named after Eisenhower who at the time was a general. He had taken a walk in the woods on the eastern portion of the Augusta national Golf Club grounds and informed the chairman of the club that he had located a great place to build a dam if he ever wanted to create a fishpond. The pond was built based on his recommendation and takes up three acres. The Augusta national golf club course is, without doubt, one of the most beautiful golf courses in the world.