Since it first started way back in 1934, the Masters has gained an unusual reputation for being both the easiest and toughest of the four golf majors to win. It is statistically the easiest, because it has the smallest field of any of the majors, with a significant proportion of those competing also being either amateurs or former champions, who are granted a lifetime exemption to play at Augusta.
However, it is also extremely tough to win, and that is purely because the iconic Augusta National course is in many ways unique. Whilst making birdies and even eagles can sometimes look easy on some holes, on others it is very tricky. In this article, we will take a look at how many birdies were made in the 2022 Masters. We will then take a look at which players scored the most birdies in the tournament.
Below, we have put together a table to show a hole-by-hole breakdown of how many birdies were made at the 2022 Masters.
| Hole | Birdies Scored |
|---|---|
| 1 | 17 |
| 2 | 128 |
| 3 | 48 |
| 4 | 10 |
| 5 | 13 |
| 6 | 29 |
| 7 | 44 |
| 8 | 94 |
| 9 | 48 |
| Front Nine Total | 431 |
| 10 | 33 |
| 11 | 10 |
| 12 | 37 |
| 13 | 91 |
| 14 | 46 |
| 15 | 74 |
| 16 | 56 |
| 17 | 24 |
| 18 | 25 |
| Back Nine Total | 396 |
| Total | 827 |
As we can see, the total number of birdies scored at the 2022 Masters was 827. Interestingly, hole 2 was clearly by far the easiest hole to birdie, with players making a whopping 128 birdies. Named Pink Dogwood, hole 2 is a 575-yard par 5, and took an average of 4.78 shots to complete. It is also worth noting that there were more birdies made in the front nine of the course, which is largely due to holes 2 and 8, which saw 128 and 94 birdies made respectively.
Who Made the Most Birdies in the 2022 Masters?
Below, we have compiled a table to show the five golfers who made the most birdies across the four rounds of the 2022 Masters.
| Player | Number of Birdies Made |
|---|---|
| Cameron Smith | 22 |
| Scottie Scheffler | 21 |
| Will Zalatoris | 19 |
| Justin Thomas | 18 |
| Win Moo Lee | 16 |
Despite winning the 2022 Masters by three shots, having finished on a very impressive 10 under par, Scottie Scheffler was pipped to the top of the birdie table by Australian Cameron Smith. However, Smith, who won the 2022 Open Championship, ended up on just five under par in the Masters, finishing third. It is also interesting to note that Rory McIlroy is not in this table, even though he came in second place, finishing the tournament seven under par. Win Moo Lee, who made more birdies (16) than the Northern Irishman (15), finished in 14th at 2 over par! Clearly golf is not all about birdies and this can be especially true at the Masters, with plenty of water, trees and tricky greens making high hole-scores distinctly possible.