“Don’t kill yourself” – Veteran Larry Mize opens up on golfers' Masters preparation

Larry Mize is a veteran of the sport. The golfer, who won the 1987 Masters by playing a career-defining 140 feet chip to defeat Greg Norman and Seve Ballesteros in the final playoff, is considered a top pro by many.

Mize had earlier revealed that the 2023 edition of the event will be his final. The 64-year-old, who enjoyed using his champions’ lifetime exemption to the tournament, is finally hanging his boots.

Ahead of his final event, the golfer has now come out to reveal some secrets about the Masters preparation. Opening up about what and what not to do for the Masters, Mize urged the golfers to ‘not kill themselves in preparation.’

Speaking to Golf at the Masters perpetrations, Larry Mize said:

“Don’t kill yourself in preparation. It’s real easy — I’ve seen guys go play 36-hole practice rounds. I’ve seen them prepare so hard that they don’t have as much energy once the tournament starts. So I’d say, prepare smart. Don’t over-prepare, because it’s very easy to do that.”

Mize, who won a total of four PGA Tour events over the course of his career and one major championship in the 1987 Masters, also addressed the Masters as an event. The golfer opened up on the allure of Augusta National and dubbed it “that special of a place.”

“I always like to tell people; you need to go to Augusta," he said. "And I don’t like to tell them why, but the thing is, you can’t see the elevation change. There’s so much elevation change on the golf course that TV can’t see it. Every time I talk to someone who hasn’t been there, they say wow, the elevation.

No. 10 is so much downhill, 18 is so much uphill, so I think that’s the thing. If you get the chance, everybody needs a chance to go there. It’s just that special of a place.”

He further addressed the noticeable course changes at Augusta. Larry Mize added:

“The biggest (change) is the length. They do a great job, the greens are very similar to what they have been. They’ll tweak them a little bit to make them better for more pin placements. But the biggest thing is the length, moving the tees back. These young pros hit it so far, they’ve needed to. They’ve done a good job keeping up with technology.”

It’ll be interesting to see how the 64-year-old veteran fair at the event this time around.

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The Masters 2023

For the unversed, the 2023 Masters is set to take place at the permanent home of the championship at Augusta National Golf Club in Georgia. The four-day event will be held from April 6 to 9 and will feature some of the best golfers in the world.

The historic tournament will also have its practice session from April 2 to 5, with the honorary start being held on the 6th.

Players including the likes of Rory McIlroy, Jon Rahm and Tiger Woods, among others, will be at the event along with some big names from LIV Golf. Reigning champion Scottie Scheffler will also return to defend his title.