Why Augusta’s Greens Are So Hard to Read

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Why Augusta’s Greens Are So Hard to Read – Even for the Best Players in the World

Last year, I did an article with Golf Digest about why Augusta National’s greens are so difficult to read.

With the Masters kicking off this week, I thought it would be a perfect time to share some of those insights again.

You can check out the full article here.

I’ve been lucky to coach 10 of the top 100 players in the world, including 8 players competing at Augusta this week who are current or former long-term students.

Even for them, Augusta’s greens can be incredibly tricky. Here’s why:

How Augusta Tricks Your Eyes

At most courses, you can look at nearby houses or buildings to judge what’s actually level. Your brain uses those landmarks as reference points.

At Augusta, those reference points are missing. No houses. No horizon lines. No hospitality tents. Even the bridges are curved.

Instead, players have to rely on trees and slopes — and that’s where the optical illusions happen. The hills and the surrounding terrain can make greens look flatter, steeper, or tilted in the wrong direction.

Even for players who have seen Augusta on TV their whole lives, the course feels completely different in person.

Want to Learn to Read Greens Better?

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A Few Famous Examples

• 3rd Hole: You walk uphill to the green, but the ground drops off behind it. It looks downhill when it’s actually sloping right-to-left.

• 10th Hole: Players often over-read the break because the huge drop-offs around the green trick their eyes.

• 18th Hole: It feels flatter than it really is, causing players to under-read key putts — especially to the traditional Sunday pin on the front-left.

What You Can Learn

✅ Your eyes can easily trick you on hilly courses.

✅ Look for something flat (houses, man-made objects) to help ground your reads.

✅ Feel the slope with your feet instead of trusting your eyes alone.

✅ Standing at the lowest point around a green can give you a better perspective.

Thanks for reading! I hope you found this helpful. If you did, feel free to share it with someone else who’s excited for Masters week too.

Talk to you next week!