By Joshua Picklesimer
Augusta National’s par-3 contest was a sight to see on Wednesday, April 5, as the players’ families joined them on the renovated layout to have one last fun day before matters get serious.
Tom Hoge was the par-3 winner as he shot a 6-under-par 21. That included an ace on No. 8.
“Yeah, it was funny,” said Hoge, a native of Statesville, N.C.,who now lives in Fargo, N.D. “I made a few birdies early and then the hole-in-one on (No.) 8, so that was cool to see that goin. It was just a fun day out here this afternoon with my wife(Kelly) caddying for me, and we just had fun out here.”
In addition to Hoge’s ace, four more hole-in-ones were made on Wednesday. Two-time Masters champion Bubba Watson and defending champion Scottie Scheffler carded aces, as did Seamus Power, who had two, on Nos. 8 and 9.
“It’s a dream come true,” Ireland’s Power said. “Obviously, to get one was special, but to get the second one was a bit surreal. It was an absolute blast out there.”
Every hole in one from the Par 3 Contest including a remarkable two from the same golfer. #themasters pic.twitter.com/7RbXXfIk5g
— The Masters (@TheMasters) April 6, 2023
Watson finished tied for second with Kurt Kitayama.
Scheffler’s hole-in-one was extraordinary, as he dunked the ball on his shot.
No one has ever hit a hole-in-one in the par-3 contest and gone on to win the Masters, so history is stacked against Scheffler going into the weekend.
Five Aces ranks third for most hole-in-ones made in the par-3 contest, with 2016 still holding the record with nine.
One of the best ambassadors for the game of golf, Gary Player participated in the event as well. The par-3 event has been contested for 61 years, and Player, the three-time Masters champion, competed in his 57th one on Wednesday afternoon.
Out of the eighteen LIV golf players competing in the Masters this weekend, 16 of them participated in the contest. Twelve of them were paired together in four groups of three.
The weather was beautiful, indeed, almost too hot, as it was 88 degrees. The record temperature for this event is 91 degrees, so it was close.
Now everyone’s attention turns to Thursday’s opening round. That includes Hoge.
“I’ll just go out and try and play well,” Hoge said of his expectations for the Masters. “We have some crazy weather here in the forecast, so I am not really sure what to expect in that regard, but I guess it was a good start here to the week today, soI’ll try to keep that going.”
The leadership at Augusta National Golf Club believes that they’ll be able to get Thursday’s round in before the inclementweather comes into the CSRA.
So all eyes are on Augusta now as the golf world waits to see who will survive the 72-hole ordeal, leading to the 87th Masters champion putting on the green jacket.
