Who Holds The Record For The Highest Single-Round Score Ever Seen At The Masters? (And Why It's Not Billy Casper)

There have been some shockingly-high scores at Augusta National Golf Club on individual holes throughout the years, with the likes of Sergio Garcia, Tom Weiskopf, and Tommy Nakajima making history for all the wrong reasons.

Meanwhile, a handful of players have fallen foul of the supposedly lightning-fast greens around the property, using their putter as many as six times.

But what about the single worst total round score ever seen at the home of The Masters? Well, that's easy. Sort of. According to the official record books, the largest number ever made over 18 holes at Augusta National Golf Club is 95 - courtesy of the late Charles Kunkle.

In 1956 - 22 years after the inaugural Masters (initially called the Augusta Invitational Tournament) - the former World War II veteran and self-taught amateur golfer ended a horrible week with a final-round total of 95.

It was the highest-scoring round of his 340 over the four days. That's 52-over and also remains the largest tournament score ever at Augusta. It will remain that way, too, given the year after was the first Masters where a halfway cut was introduced.

According to Kevin Kaduk of Yahoo Sports, there were a number of unhelpful factors which led to Kunkle blasting 95 on the Sunday, mind you, and it was not that he was a poor player.

He had earned his way to the tournament fair and square by reaching the quarter-finals of the US amateur in 1955 - part of a run of five consecutive US amateur appearances.

Firstly, he was 42 at the time and clearly did not have the access or insight into modern-day physiotherapy etc.

Secondly, he had only played nine holes of actual golf in the build-up due to the fact that he was a businessman during the week who reportedly spent much of his practice time hitting balls off of a mat in a barn. And when he travelled down to The Greenbrier in West Virginia to practice weeks before The Masters began, poor weather prevented him from doing much at all.

Therefore, when he was met with similarly woeful rain and wind during the 1956 Masters - said to have hosted some of the worst weather in tournament history - Kunkle knew he was likely to be up against it somewhat.

Unhelpfully, as far as Kunkle was concerned, the 1956 tournament was also the first to be televised in the US. Not that every shot was shown (and 70 years later, not much has changed) but those watching may have been able to watch some part of the Pennsylvania man's scores rising one day after another.

Kunkle carded 78 on Thursday, finishing in darkness because of a weather-delayed start, an 82 on Friday, an 85 on Saturday, and then the record 95 to cap it all off.

Speaking to told The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette in 2005 about his ordeal, Kunkle said: "I was just trying to get out of there. It was very windy, the toughest conditions I ever played in."

Not that there was any shame from the former basketball captain at Duke about his place in history. He continued: "The record, that's not important to me. I earned my way there. You don't get there by knowing the right people. I was proud to have played in the Masters.”

However. And this is a fairly significant 'however' at that. Kunkle should have been displaced at the top of the list of single-highest-round scores ever in 2005.

The late Billy Casper won The Masters via a playoff against Gene Littler in 1970 aged 38 after the pair both recorded a total score of 279. It was Casper's third Major success following two previous US Open wins and guaranteed him a lifetime spot at The Masters.

Fast forward 35 years and Casper was still making the most of his annual start long after his final professional victory on any tour in 1989. Days before the tournament was due to take place, he announced it would be his final run around Augusta and his clubs would be reserved for social visits to the local golf course instead.

Given what would go on to happen on the Thursday, Casper probably wished he had jacked it in the year before. On his seventh hole of the day - the par 3 16th - Casper shot a 14 as part of an opening 57. That, in part, helped him fire a totally unenviable 106 in total.

But, aged 73 at the time and having only undergone hip surgery two years prior, Casper opted not to hand his scorecard in and the three-figure total was ultimately expunged from the record books. Poor Charles Kunkle.