Golden Bell, aka hole #12, may be Augusta National’s shortest par three, but it has teeth. With three challenging green-side bunkers and Rae’s Creek, this 155 yard beauty has brought the world’s finest golfers to their knees.

When it was announced that The Masters would take place in November for the first time — I decided it was time to capture this legendary slice of Augusta. This is the result… let’s see how we got here.

The nexus of this painting was structural… breaking down the form into major shapes, establishing shadows, and basic tonality.

Unsure of which direction this piece would go, it never hurts to spend some time building the composition.

With some tree forms articulated, this is where the ‘two path diverged in the wood’ — and I made up my mind to go looser… more gestural… similar to the Pandemic Guggenheim.

Harkening back to the early days of the pandemic, I live streamed from the studio throughout the tournament. One good stroke deserves another. The studio was on par. Plenty of hazards on canvas. OK, I’m done.

My first go was all about blocking out trees, the green, water, foreground and bridge stones. With many of my works, each stroke is deliberate and calculated… so, I find great joy in spontaneity.

The following session was  huge… it was a process of identifying shapes and forms in black, red, and finally a near-white yellow. As with all works, I love spending time looking and experiencing work in a variety of lights prior to making the final strokes.

Following said analysis, I decided to modify many of the highlight strokes… and, of course, the green required articulation… with the showcase, the flag… waiting in the wings.

And here, you can see all of the final touches come to life… via The Facebook.

And so, I present, “Golden Bell”. Congratulations Dustin Johnson! Amazing work… and worry not. As an 18 handicap, I’ll keep my strokes in the acrylic and away from Augusta’s hallowed grounds. Who knows? Perhaps I’ll revisit this whole for the next Major… which is? You guessed it — The Masters.

And, before I go, I want to give a shout to the team at The Masters for selecting a work of art by Lee Wybranski for the cover of their 84th Masters Tournament Journal! Beauty.

What is your favorite hole in golf? Why?

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