Posted April 7, 2014, 3:51 pm
BY

Staff Writer

Pine cone helps patrons pay respects to Ike's Tree

A single pine cone marked the spot.

As patrons made the pilgrimage to pay respects to the recently departed Eisenhower Tree, they wondered where it had been among all the green.

Expecting questions about the tree, gallery workers placed the pine cone at the approximate location of the now-gone 65-foot loblolly.

The famous pine was severely damaged during a February ice storm, leading to its removal. Other trees were casualties, but none as iconic as Ike’s Tree.

Even with the perfectly placed pine cone, some patrons struggled to find the location. Sod and seeding had taken care of any harsh blemishes.

When asked about the tree’s former location, workers simply pointed to the pine cone, about 210 yards from the 17th tee and on the left side of the fairway.

“See the pine cone? It’s engraved, ‘In memory of,’ ” someone quipped.

Tommy O’Shaughnessy, of Columbus, Ohio, made the spot his first stop. Friends Scott LeFevre and Jeff Torrence were with him. The three attended Upper Arlington High School, Jack Nicklaus’ alma mater.

As O’Shaughnessy looked at the pine cone, he couldn’t help but wonder what former President Dwight D. Eisenhower would think about the passing of the tree that befuddled him when he played No. 17.

“The guy says, ‘I saved the free world and won World War II.’ ‘Too bad. Your tree stays up,’ ” O’Shaughnessy said. “Right now, he’s going, ‘Why couldn’t that have happened 50 years ago?’ ”

Before the suspension of Monday’s play, a constant stream of patrons talked about the tree and took pictures of the pine cone.

Among them were Mary Gleason Macy and her husband, Brandon. The New Providence, N.J., couple focused on the cone with a camera and grabbed a picture.

“The president of the United States couldn’t get it done, but an act of God could,” Brandon Macy said.

Without a permanent marker, patrons were dependent on the makeshift reference point.

“That’s classy. See how subtle that is? That’s what’s so classic about this whole place,” said Torrence, gesturing to the spot. “There’s the tomb.”

Slideshow: Ike in Augusta

IKE'S TREE

Where was Ike’s tree? The loblolly pine was about 210 yards from the tee on the left side of the 17th hole.
What will you see or hear? Now that the tree is gone, expect plenty of patrons to go see where it once stood. There will be no shortage of suggestions on how to replace it.
Did you know? President Eisenhower’s best score at Augusta National was 78. That’s according to his former caddie, Willie Perteet, who was better known by his nickname of “Cemetery.” That score came in 1958, when Eisenhower played with Arnold Palmer the day after Palmer won his first Masters.

WHAT THEY’RE SAYING

ARNOLD PALMER: “Well, of course I played Augusta every year since that tree was a baby and I watched it grow up. And I played a lot of golf at Augusta with Ike. And of course he hated that tree. But he was a soft-spoken guy and a president who was very enjoyable. And he didn’t like the tree at all. A couple of times he told me, he said, ‘Arnie, if I could hit that tree enough to bring it down, I’d do it.’ And that’s in fun.”

JACK NICKLAUS: “The Eisenhower Tree is such an iconic fixture and symbol of tradition at Augusta National. It was such an integral part of the game and one that will be sorely missed … I hit it so many times over the years that I don’t care to comment on the names I called myself and the names I might have called the tree. ‘Ike’s Tree’ was a kind choice. But looking back, Ike’s Tree will be greatly missed.”

GARY PLAYER: “(Augusta National should) purchase the biggest replacement known to mankind and replace it. The hole is not the same without Ike’s Tree.”

Pine cone helps patrons pay respects to Ike's Tree

From AugustaChronicle.com »

Photos

Pine cone helps patrons pay respects to Ike's Tree

From AugustaChronicle.com »

Photos

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