Anticipation is always high ahead of The Masters but perhaps even more so for the 2023 edition following changes made by Augusta National to one of golf’s most iconic holes.
Long rumoured to be in the pipeline, work commenced and finished to lengthen the par-5 13th from 510 yards to 545 yards and the club have now released images showing what the players will face this week when they step onto "Azalea".
A statement issued said the changes were made with an "unwavering commitment to a vision set forth by Bobby Jones and Dr. Alister MacKenzie some 90 years ago", while Augusta National chairman Fred Ridley referenced a quote from Jones in further explaining the decision.
"There's a great quote from Bobby Jones dealing specifically with the 13th hole, which has been lengthened over time, and he said that the decision to go for the green in two should be a momentous one," Ridley said.
"And I would have to say that our observations of these great players hitting middle and even short irons into that hole is not a momentous decision."
It certainly looks like a more daunting prospect but what do the players think? Some have already been scouting out the Georgia venue in preparation for the first men’s Major of the year and have given their takes on how the new-look hole will play this week.
Rory McIlroy, who restarts his quest to complete the career grand slam, said: "I think overall it's a little like 11 in terms of the change. I think they made the tee shot easier because you don't really have to do anything with the tee shot anymore. Just hit it sort of straight up the chute.
"The second shot, much more difficult. A little bit like 11. The second shot on 11 is much more difficult with how they've contoured the front of the green. I used to hit 8-iron from a flat lie into 13 and now I hit a 5-iron from the ball way above my feet. Just makes you think a little bit more about the second shot which I think is good."
Two players who already have a green jacket or two - Bubba Watson and Patrick Reed - also chimed in, saying there will be a lot more lay-ups this year due to the extra risk involved.
"It looks beautiful," Watson said. "But I think there's going to be a lot more laying up just because the water is now into play, the little creek there is into play. You think about it more.
"I hit two good drives and I had 231 the first day and then I had like 227 the second day, and I hit two drives, so I hit a 3-iron one day and a 4-iron but in the tournament I probably would have laid up."
Reed, the 2018 champion, added: "I played with DJ and Harold over there for two days, and I went in there with hybrid for two days off of that lie, and if the greens firm up at all and get to kind of tournament speed, with the ball that far above your feet, that hybrid isn't coming in that high.
"DJ laid up both days. I laid up. Tournament time I would have laid up, but since we're out there seeing it, I of course went and send for it."
Amid criticism that hitting distances in the men's game in particular have spiralled out of control, this will be music to the ears of some. It certainly sounds like we are going to see more drivers off the tee and more balls in the water short of the green, making the back nine on Sunday an even more enticing prospect.
