By Frank Pingue
AUGUSTA, Georgia (Reuters) – Two towering pine trees came crashing down near the tee box of the par-four 17th hole at Augusta National on Friday and sent patrons running for safety before play at the Masters was suspended for the day as a storm moved into the area.
Augusta National Golf Club said nobody was injured from the trees that fell down as breezy northeasterly winds ushered in colder conditions.
Threatening weather forced officials to suspend play for a second time at 4:22 p.m. ET (2022 GMT) before they ultimately decided to resume the round at 8:00 a.m. ET on Saturday.
“The safety and well-being of everyone attending the Masters Tournament will always be the top priority of the club,” Augusta National Golf Club said in a statement. “We will continue to closely monitor the weather today and through the tournament.”
Moments after the two trees came down under darkening skies, there were several crew members on sight cleaning up the debris.
The second round was initially interrupted for 21 minutes at 3:07 p.m. as a storm cell moved through the area and many of the patrons who had been in the vicinity of the fallen trees were not back in position when they came down.
Brooks Koepka went out in ideal early conditions and shot a five-under-par 67 that brought him to 12 under on the week and gave him a four-shot clubhouse lead over amateur Sam Bennett.
There were still 39 golfers yet to finish their round, including overnight co-leaders Jon Rahm, who was two under through nine holes, and Viktor Hovland, one over through 10.
Many of the pines found in the original forested part of Augusta National are over 150 years old while many others were planted when the course was built.
In 2014, Augusta National’s famed Eisenhower Tree at the 17th hole that was believed to be about 100 years old had to be removed from its position in the fairway after being damaged by an ice storm.
The tree, which was about 65 feet tall, guarded the left side of the fairway at the par-four 17th and was strategically situated 210 yards from the tee.
It received its name because former U.S. president and club member Dwight Eisenhower hit into the tree so often he campaigned to have it removed.
(Reporting by Frank Pingue in Augusta, Georgia, editing by Pritha Sarkar)
