Augusta National will have a different look for Adam Scott’s Masters title defence after the famous Eisenhower Tree was removed.

Situated on the left side of the 17th fairway, the large pine is a huge part of Masters folklore, but it’s been pulled down after it suffered irreparable damage in a recent ice storm.

“The loss of the Eisenhower Tree is difficult news to accept. We obtained opinions from the best arborists available and, unfortunately, were advised that no recovery was possible,” said Billy Payne, the Augusta National chairman.

Without the pine, the 17th takes on a completely different look and becomes a much easier proposition from the tee, so it is likely to be replaced.

The tree was named after former US President Dwight D. Eisenhower, a golfing nut and club member from 1948 until his death in 1969.

He reputedly hit into the tree so often that he campaigned for it to be removed, only to have Augusta National’s founding chairman Clifford Roberts rule the motion out of order and promptly adjourn the club’s 1956 governors’ meeting.

The pine has been known as Eisenhower’s Tree ever since.

“We have begun deliberations of the best way to address the future of the 17th hole and to pay tribute to this iconic symbol of our history – rest assured, we will do both appropriately,” Payne said.

“I can report that the golf course sustained no major damage otherwise. We are now open for member play and we will be unaffected in our preparations for the 2014 Masters tournament.”

Australia’s world No.11 Australian Jason Day, who has runner-up and third place finishes on his Masters resume, was disappointed to hear of the famous tree’s demise.

“That’s a shame and it would look really different without it,” Day said.

“No doubt they will replace it in a timely and impressive manner and it will probably look like it has been there for 100 years. They always do it right at Augusta.”

The tree has played a role in the outcome of many Masters through the years including for Jose Maria Olazabal after he famously punched a five-iron onto the green from under it to preserve his victory over Greg Norman in 1999.

Most recently it impacted Tiger Woods in 2012 when the tree snagged his drive and he injured his Achilles tendon hitting his recovery shot from an awkward stance in the pine straw underneath low-hanging branches.