Last fall, Hurricane Helene made landfall on Florida’s Gulf Coast, before moving north. As the system stalled over Georgia and the Carolinas, it brought high winds and devastating flooding to much of the mid-Atlantic. 252 lives were lost and an estimated $78.7 billion in damages were inflicted, making it the deadliest storm to hit the U.S. mainland since Hurricane Katrina in 2005.
Worst hit were towns like Asheville, North Carolina, but a small hamlet by the name of Augusta on the Georgia/South Carolina border also lay directly in the storm’s path. Rumors of extensive damages to the property of Augusta National, the hallowed site of the Masters, swirled for months, but given the club’s tight-lipped nature, no one knew the full extent of the impact … until now. On Wednesday, TikTok user Manicotti17 shared footage of the course’s iconic “Amen Corner” stretch—in this case, the course’s 11th and 12th holes—in the wake of Helene and, needless to say, it is shocking.
@manicotti17 #amencorner #augustanational #monsoon #flooding ♬ Danger – SoundAudio
RELATED: In Augusta, home to the Masters, residents talk about fright and damage of Hurricane Helene
We don’t know exactly when this footage was taken, but Hurricane Helene made landfall in Florida’s Big Bend region on the morning of September 27th. By the time the 2025 Masters began on April 10th, the same section of the course, where the Hogan Bridge spans Rae’s Creek, looked like this …
Richard Heathcote
Richard Heathcote
RELATED: This old photo of Rae’s Creek before Augusta National existed shows how much things have changed
Augusta National grounds crew is world-famous and highly secretive, but this is perhaps the best testament yet to their prowess. We got a front-row seat to the team’s ability to erase damage as if it were chalk on a chalkboard after a storm felled several trees during the tournament in 2023, but Helene required a totally different level reconstructive surgery. The Hogan Bridge is one of the course’s most recognizable sites. It is highly scrutinized, and the Masters’ faithful patrons notice even the smallest discrepancies. Yet few on the grounds in April could have guessed that seven months before, the beloved bend was little more than mud and rubble.
This should not trivialize the impact Hurricane Helene, however. There are perhaps only one or two more important golf courses on earth than Augusta National, but it is still just a golf course. Far, far more was lost in the wake of the storm than a green complex. But the efforts of ANGC’s grounds crew should not go unheralded. Their toil and skill helped to revive one of golf’s most vital landmarks just in time for golf’s most cherished tournament. For that we say thank you, and, of course, Amen.
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This article was originally published on golfdigest.com
