The Masters, The Eyes Of A CPGA Pro & His Superintendent
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- Category: Inside Golf
- Published: 2025-04-26
By Gord Montgomery, Senior Writer, Inside Golf
SPRUCE GROVE, Alberta — When you or I, as average golfers, head to a huge PGA TOUR event like The Masters, we have a game plan of sorts in mind. You know, head to a certain spot and camp out for the day. If you’re more motivated, you pick a group to follow around the course. What about a club professional golfer and a course superintendent? What is their game plan?
For PGA of Alberta executive professional Murray McCourt and his head grounds guy Derek Senkow from The Ranch G&CC, their spectating philosophy was different than ours. On site at Augusta National for a single day, the pair undertook a detailed plan.
“Augusta is such a different beast,” said McCourt in recollection. “I invited my superintendent to go with me, and he and I had the exact same idea and plan, which was absolutely awesome. Our idea with Augusta was that we wanted to get there quite early and walk the entire course, 1 through 18. You know, we all watch it on TV, know all the holes, in a very different way than actually being there. We walked it and really got a different feel for the golf course. How it flows, that type of thing.”
“We all love Augusta ‘cause it looks so amazing on TV, but TV does not do it any justice whatsoever because it’s so much better than what we see on TV — the different levels, the elevation changes on that golf course are significant. You really don’t have any real appreciation for watching that on TV. The other interesting thing is the undulation on the greens, which is absolutely crazy! We do see on TV some putts that break, guys are putting sideways from where the hole is, but when you’re actually there and you see it, these greens are out of this world!” McCourt said, noting that the average golfer (you and me in this case), “You’re going to four, five, six, seven putt a heck of a lot more than three putt. I don’t think an average golfer would ever two-putt on any of them!”
Speaking of those greens and their difficulty, the Alberta-based pair had the advantage with their VIP passes to head to the famed Berckmans Place. Behind the ultra-exclusive hangout behind the fifth fairway, there are replica putting greens. McCourt took a swing (or several) at attempting to hole a putt on those. Now remember, this guy is a PGA of Canada professional golfer.
“There are three replica greens, seven, 14, and 16, and they are identical to the greens on the course, cut exactly as they are for the tournament. There are high-end putters there for you to use. When you’re there, the caddies for the members are out there. They’ll do things like, ‘Line up this putt. Tell me where you think it’s going to go.’ I’m a golf pro, so I think I’m pretty good at reading greens. So, I tell them where I think the ball needs to be hit, and this one time in particular, the person walked 20 feet further right than where I was thinking it needed to go, and he said, ‘Die the putt at my feet.’ I’m like, ‘Are you kidding me? That makes no sense whatsoever.’ I didn’t die it at his feet — it was a little heavy, but I didn’t think crazy heavy. It did run right past the hole, but about 15 feet past the hole because I didn’t die it at his feet. To be close on putts, you literally have to hit it perfectly.”
As for the guys taking on Augusta and their short games on the day they were there, McCourt recounted, “We were by 16 when one of the pros 4-putted from 20 feet, maybe. When a PGA player does that, what would an average guy do?”
Then, of course, still looking this golfing gem over, there are the bunkers. McCourt explained that they aren’t just piles of sand — they are caverns of difficulty.
“They are incredibly deep. We were standing by a green later on when we were actually watching golfers and I’d say to Derek, ‘Where is the guy we were watching?’ He’d say, ‘He’s in the bunker,’ 25 yards away, and we couldn’t even see him!”
With all that taken care of, the pair then became spectators, and despite what you see on TV of massive crowds milling about, the sight lines are great, McCourt said. They were there on Friday and not the final two days, so the crowds were a bit thinner.
“It’s actually not hard to see,” he explained. “For the practice rounds, they have 50,000 spectators. They have 40,000 for the tournament. They want it to be a very exclusive experience,” where rules include no cell phones, no backwards hat wearing, and no running. “We were there on Friday, so there are fewer people than on Sunday, when many people are trying to watch the final group. I stood right beside the tee boxes, like literally six or seven feet away from guys when they were teeing off. On the edges of greens, like 20 feet away from cups, and guys putting. So it’s actually not really difficult at all. People are fully respectful. It’s a different crowd than other tournaments.”
As they watched the best players in the world do their thing in the biggest event of the year, the Albertans got their share of memories.
“On Friday, when Rory McIlroy eagled Number 13, we were right there in the grandstand. We went to Amen Corner and hung out there for quite some time. Corey Conners came through and birdied Number 11. But when we were there, more guys hit the ball in the water on 11 than hit the green in regulation. That’s the 500-and-whatever par 4. Then we hung by 16 for a while,” where retiring Masters champ, Bernhard Langer came through and received one of many standing ovations from the assembled crowd.
All that being said, what do the pro and the superintendent take back to The Ranch to perhaps enhance their plan of action? Other than providing $1.50 egg salad sandwiches, of course.
“That’s an interesting question. It is Augusta National, and things there are different. When it comes to that, one of the things we’ve always prided ourselves on at The Ranch is unmatched value. I joked with Derek, three days before we opened, ‘Derek, you’ve got three days to get The Ranch looking like this place!’ The reality is, it’s almost impossible to get a bad lie at Augusta, which makes it way easier for guys to hit great shots even from the pine straw. The fairways there are cut just higher than our greens are. The rough is cut just higher than our fairways are. You’d never get a bad lie there. The thing is, it’s just a hard golf course!”
Of course, one where memories are made, whether you’re a Canadian golf club professional taking measure of the layout and the amenities, or just an average golfing guy or girl who marvels at everything this hallowed hall of golf presents year in and year out.