I Could Win The Masters...With One Stipulation
Jamie Squire. Getty Images.The For You Page on TikTok is an interesting thing. It has an absolutely amazing way of showing you things you are interested in, things you didn't know you were interested in then become interested in after seeing them, or just cool stuff. It really does have a pulse on what videos you watch, your interests, etc. And the remarkable thing is it caters to each person yet somehow always nails it. On my page I get sports, home improvements that I in no way can actually accomplish, comedians, and some viral dances.
For some people, let's say 45 year olds in Miami, they may get videos of wearing hats at all times, tips in a night club where you are the oldest person by 10 years, pissing on porches, or continuously stirring the pot at one person's expense.
For others, they will get reality tv show clips, random cooking tips etc. Yet like I said somehow in every case, they cater it directly to what you like. It really is remarkable.
Golf is now on my TikTok page a lot. Obviously, because I follow the most premiere golf podcast in the world, I see Foreplay a lot.
This video popped up on my page. Riggs poses the question, "How many yards out could you start on each hole and win The Masters?"
It's a great question and hypotheticals are fun. I should have taken note of that while I was still podcasting.
Obviously if you started 1 yard away on every hole you could win the Masters. For this exercise I'm trying to see what the maximum amount of yards I could start out and win the Masters.
Dan Rapaport says 150 yards, Riggs says 125, and Trent brings up the smartest point for shitty golfers like me…THE GREENS.
The greens in Augusta are a bitch. A guy like me who barely breaks 100 on a good day will struggle mightily on the Bermuda grass.
I'm a decent putter (finished Top 5 in Barstool Mini Golf … no big deal)
But Augusta is much different than the local mini golf course. Let's be realistic. I am determined to give an accurate answer of where I could start and get a green jacket.
My initial gut answer was 100 yards. I thought that was a possibility. After Trent's point about the greens I have to reconsider that answer. Let's say if I could plug it within 25 feet on every green (which let's face it … is not happening at Augusta), a safe play is a two putt (at minimum) from there. That's a best case . What's more likely to happen is you plug it to within 25 feet on like 6 holes max ,and you 3 putt 6-7 holes. Thats putting you over par. Where you can't win.
That brings up a point that you have to consider. What score usually wins the Masters?
That's an average score of -10.8 from the last 23 winners, so let's call it -11, which mean you need -12 to win (or -3 every round for 4 rounds).
How far out could I start to guarantee -3 each round?
My answer is 25 yards out.
I think chipping can be difficult but at 25 yards out, I can put enough close to limit disasters on 3-4 putts. Remember, this is where you start on every hole, so on a Par 5, I still start at 25 yards. If I can miraculously get a 3,I'm in with an Eagle. If I take a 4, it's a Birdie and I'm ahead of the game. I also think at 25 yards, I can somehow stumble into getting one super close on a chip and drill a putt for a 2. If that happens to be on a Par 5 we are golden. Even a Par 4 is an Eagle.
One last point, if you are saying start on the green, I actually think it's harder to putt 4 times at Augusta than it would be to try and chip and run one close. I know this would never happen where I get to test this theory out, but I would love to do this at a difficult local course and see how I do. Because if I can't go -12 at a local course, there's no way I can go -12 at Augusta.
Drop your answer below, I look forward to all the golf guys explaining their answers. Also let's start a thread in the comments. Get at me @Return_Of_RB.