There are few walks in sport quite like the second nine at Augusta National, especially when in contention during the final round at the Masters. They don’t say the Masters doesn’t begin until the back nine on Sunday for nothing.
Rarely does it disappoint and rarely does it not throw up more than its fair share of sporting drama.
But, is it as seen on TV? Or is there more than meets the eye to the most iconic stretch of holes in golf?
Famed for being the home of the Masters. Very few, if any, golf courses can or do rival it. During the 2026 Masters, Tom Irwin and Dan Murphy, the NCG Top 100s Podcast hosts, walked Augusta’s closing stretch and came away with a fresh appreciation for the layout.
Here’s a hole-by-hole guide of the second nine at one of the most exclusive courses in the world…
10th Hole – Camellia
A unique hole, but is it of the same calibre as some of the others?
“It’s the sort of hole where I think if you found it on a kind of workaday golf course in this country you’d be like, ‘what on earth am I playing here’,” claimed Irwin.
“If you got those tees 50 yards forwards, you could basically hit a seven-iron off the tee, and then it just tumbles and tumbles and tumbles.
“It’s absolutely mad.”
11th hole – White Dogwood
This is the start of one of the toughest stretches in golf. It is the first hole of the increasingly notorious Amen Corner – a three-hole stretch that is seen as the toughest on the course.
“I think it’s a bit of a giveaway of a tee shot,” Irwin said. “I think it’s one of the strangest things about watching the golf on TV that you think of 11 as being an absolute monster from start to finish, but actually I think the tee shot is possibly a bit of respite.”
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12th Hole – Golden Bell
The hole that famously staged Jordan Speith’s collapse at the 2016 Masters. He walked away with a quadruple-bogey 7, relinquishing his long-time lead as Danny Willett went on to claim his only major championship to date.
Irwin felt it lived up to the hype, as he said: “I’m not sure it disappoints. I think it possibly delivers on every single cliche. The swirling wind, the strategy of aiming at the centre of the green and never taking the flag on.”
“Something I hadn’t picked up at all until standing on the tee is that it effectively points at the left of the green,” Murphy added.
“That also affects both how you perceive the green, but means that the right-hand side – the dangerous side – is even further away and even more awkward of an angle.”
13th Hole – Azalea
“Probably the most famous (hole) on the golf course”, Irwin noted. “It feels like there have been more iconic moments on 13 than almost any other hole.”
If Augusta National has a signature risk-and-reward hole, it’s probably the 13th.
“I feel like we have lived through different iterations of the 13th. Back in the day, this was 440 (yards) of the championship tees, and now it’s 545 (yards).”
14th Hole – Chinese Fir
After the perils of Amen Corner, Murphy believes the 14th is a return to the more tranquil nature of Augusta, even if only for a moment.
He pointed out that: “The 14th green is always in shade and it’s a lovely spot. It’s another very quiet part of the golf course.
“So you just had all of that assault on the senses from 13, where you’ve really engaged with the tournament and then you disappear up 14 and you can hear the birds singing again.
15th Hole – Firethorn
To keep up with the power hitting of the modern game, like many holes, this one has been lengthened.
Now playing 550 yards, the hole yielded only four eagles during the 2026 Masters.
“Phil Mickelson doesn’t like how this has been extended, and I’m inclined to think he has got a point actually,” said Murphy.
“I think it’s a terrifying pitch (into the green), never mind a four-iron or whatever it is (the pros hit).”
Tom Irwin added: “Fifteen just feels like a hole you just wouldn’t complete. There’d be no way to do it. Fatting chips, putting it off the green and trying to hit your three-wood from 220 (yards) ending up on the 16th green. It would be an absolute mess of a thing.”
16th Hole – Redbud
I can’t think of too many more famous par-3s in world golf. Tiger Woods’ famous chip-in during the final round of 2005 Masters victory has only added to the magic of the 16th at Augusta.
“It’s hot, it’s loud, it’s a big moment in the tournament when you get here,” Murphy recalled.
“I don’t think that the 16th is one of the more sophisticated holes on the golf course. It’s great to watch because you feel like you know it, and you can kind of see where the ball is going to come from.”
17th Hole – Nandina
The 17th often feels overshadowed by the holes around it. But for Murphy, walking and observing the sheer scale of the elevation it boasts in person changed his appreciation of the challenge.
“I think there is an element that the excitement finishes at 16 and then it’s a case of manoeuvring back to the clubhouse,” he outlined.
“From 17 and 18 it is such a long way from home at that point in golfing terms because it will take you forever to get up these two holes. The climb off the tee shot on 17 is something you don’t appreciate (watching from home).”
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18th Hole – Holly
“I think it’s a tee shot hole and the tee shot is unbelievably intimidating,” said Irwin. “The shoot is a thing of golfing nightmares. Not only because you’re worried about clipping trees on the way of it, but it also gives the appearance of the landing area being really narrow.
“It’s not pleasant.”
McIlroy almost came unstuck here during the final round of the 2026 championship, before he claimed his second Masters victory, after hitting an errant tee shot into the trees down the right.
Murphy added: “I really wouldn’t relish that tee shot. What bothered me is that it seemed the fairway didn’t start until a distance I wouldn’t be able to get it to.
“It feels like it’s 280 yards to reach the fairway, which I can’t really get my head around.”
LISTEN TO OUR PODCAST
- NOW READ: What we learned walking Augusta National’s front nine at the Masters
- NOW READ: Is this the best 36-hole venue in the UK?
- NOW READ: Why the Sunningdale Foursomes remains one of golf’s great traditions
NOW HAVE YOUR SAY
Which hole impresses you the most on the second nine at Augusta National? What are your favourite memories from play on the second nine at the Masters? Let us know by leaving a comment or by getting in touch with us on X!
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