How the Masters, and Augusta National, bounced back from Hurricane Helene storm damage

Masters chiefs have revealed the extent of the damage caused to Augusta National by Hurricane Helene - with towering Georgia Pines wiped out by the 200km/h wins.

Masters chiefs have revealed the extent of the damage caused to Augusta National by Hurricane Helene.

Players have talked openly about how different and “airy” the course feels after hundreds of trees and towering Georgia Pines were wiped out by 200kph winds in September.

“It almost felt like I was playing the back nine for the first time,” two-time major champion Xander Schauffele said.

“It’s pretty crazy and sad to see how many trees have fallen.”

Rory McIlroy said the famous 10th hole where dozens of substantial trees were lost on the left side was now “less visually intimidating”.

For the first time, the only place to watch the Masters live is Fox Sports, available on Kayo Sports and Foxtel.

A drone shot reveals the damage done by Hurricane Helene.

Spaniard and former Masters champion Jon Rahm joked about players taking a new line on the difficult par-4.

“I’m not going to say who. Somebody did tell me you can hit a high cut over the cabins on 10,” Rahm joked.

Augusta National chairman Fred Ridley said preparing the course in time for the Masters had been “a monumental effort”.

“I don’t think I’ve ever seen anything that horrific in my life until the LA fires,” Ridley said of the storm’s impact on the local community.

“It was about 48 hours when I arrived at the club after the storm finally subsided, and that was because it took that long for us to clear all the internal roadways so we could just begin the process of cleaning up.

“At times we had well over 200, 250 people on the property. But what I think is more important and what really was something that had an impact on me was the way our employees went into the community and really started focusing their efforts in addition to the work they had to do here, but how they could help their fellow citizens of Augusta.

Scottie Scheffler walks the glorious course as he approaches the 15th green. Picture: Getty

“Many of those people were impacted themselves. They had trees fall on their houses, on their cars. Their properties were littered with debris and trees. But it was really amazing what they did to help others.”

In his annual State of the Masters address, Ridley focused on two contentious issues in the game – pace of play and the creeping distance of the golf ball.

“Playing without undue delay, as the rules and the game’s traditions dictate, is an essential skill of golf at all levels,” he said.

“I am encouraged that the PGA Tour is doing some things, experimenting with some timing procedures that might be a little bit more aggressive than we’ve seen in the past.”

Colombian Nicolas Echavarria won the traditional Par 3 contest on Wednesday in a two-hole playoff against America’s J.J Spaun.

Augusta forecast:

Thursday: Partly cloudy, 24c

Friday: Chance of late storms, 22c

Saturday: Sunny, 19c

Sunday: Mostly sunny, 21c