Major Mimicry, Close to Home

A "Tradition Unlike Any Other" has come to the masses, and it's less than an hour from the District.

Open for a little more than three months, Renditions presents a taste of the Masters by bringing Augusta National's three most recognized holes to Davidsonville. Nos. 11-13 at arguably the world's most celebrated golf course actually make up Nos. 6-8 at Renditions, but other than that the differences from the authentic Amen Corner are virtually indistinguishable.

The development team at Renditions also has done exemplary work constructing the course's other 15 holes, all reproductions of holes recognized as sites of seminal moments from golf's four major championships.

No. 1, for instance, plays to the specifications of No. 17 at The Country Club, where caddie Francis Ouimet was the protagonist in a landmark match in American golf history. By making a putt for par on No. 17, Ouimet secured a victory over professionals Harry Vardon and Edward Ray in a playoff to win the 1913 U.S. Open. More than eight decades later, Justin Leonard's 45-foot putt on the same hole capped a remarkable comeback win by the United States at the 1999 Ryder Cup after it trailed Europe, 10-6, heading into the final day's singles matches.

"We like to call ourselves the Grand Slam experience because the holes had to play host to one of the majors," Renditions director of golf Jeff Sheehan said.

The only deviation is No. 13, which is a reproduction of No. 17 at the TPC at Sawgrass, where the Players Championship is contested.

"Some refer to that as the fifth major," said Sheehan, a native of Crofton who is vice president of William Cole, Inc., the Houston-based company responsible for Renditions.

There are, however, glaring omissions at Renditions. No sign of No. 17 at Pebble Beach. No duplicates from Pinehurst No. 2.

"There were some legal issues, so we decided to stay away from them," Sheehan said, adding that Pebble Beach and Pinehurst filed suit against Renditions. "Basically it was a trademark issue."

In order to reproduce the rest of the holes, the Renditions design team relied on aerial photography and topographical data. That information base is unique to Renditions, according to Sheehan.

"Others have done this concept before," Sheehan said, "but they have taken pictures [of famous holes], and that becomes their interpretation. We used aerial photography and topographical data so you could physically get it exact."

Renditions has done just that for the weekend golfer who has fantasized about stepping up to the par-3 12th at Augusta with the Masters hanging in the balance. Maybe you will fare better than Tom Weiskopf, who in 1980 put five balls into Rae's Creek and made a 13, effectively yielding the Green Jacket to Seve Ballesteros.