'Owe It To Seve': Nick Faldo Shares the Augusta Lessons That Led to His Defining Masters Moment

Severiano Ballesteros won the Masters in 1980 and 1983, and he was the first European to really figure out Augusta. Faldo believes that without Seve showing it could be done, that mental block might not have gone away.

The greens were another challenge, and the only similar ones European players saw were in Australia, at Royal Melbourne and courses like it. Augusta was a completely different learning experience.

Eventually, Faldo’s breakthrough came during a practice round when he spoke with Nicklaus. He was playing well but kept missing his chances. So he asked Jack a simple question, do you make it happen or do you let it happen?

“Jack typically goes, yeah,” Faldo recalled. “He says, I know what you mean, and just walks away.”

Faldo decided to let it happen, and it worked. He played his first 27 holes at six under and led by two as he reached the 10th. Then it all went wrong. He shot 77 in the third round and dropped way back.

Then came the moment at 16. His ball was just off the green, about 15 feet from the hole with a big break. The putt went in. He made another one on 17. That pushed him into a playoff, where he beat Scott Hoch.

But of all the times he won at Augusta, there was one that stood out.

Nick Faldo in 1996

The 1996 Masters never really ended for Faldo. Greg Norman carried a six-shot lead into Sunday, and Faldo shot 67.