About six weeks ago, my friend and future roommate Matt informed me that he had won the Masters ticket lottery and had an extra badge for Wednesday's practice round. I quickly jumped at the chance to visit the most famous golf course in the world.
On Tuesday morning I met Tanner, another friend and member of the Auburn football tailgate crew, in Montgomery and we set out for Auburn. There we met up with Matt and his girlfriend Lena and enjoyed a delicious lunch at The Barbecue House. From there, Matt, Tanner, and I headed east, and we made our final stop in Grantville, Georgia (don't worry, I didn't know such a place existed either), where we picked up Mr. Mike, the leader of the tailgate crew and the only one of us who was not an Augusta first-timer.
We arrived in Augusta a little before 7 on Tuesday night, and, after settling into the hotel, headed across town to scout out the area around the course. After we put together our plans for Wednesday morning, we met up with Mike's son Coleman, who is in Augusta this week covering The Masters for Golf.com. All of us went downtown for dinner at Farmhaus, a popular burger joint. Downtown Augusta was beautiful. All of the shops and restaurants lining both sides of the street, combined with the buzz of Masters week, made for a great atmosphere.
After retreating to the hotel for a few hours of sleep, we awoke the next morning and went to Waffle House for breakfast. We then drove the couple of miles to the course, passing the infamous Hooter's where the PGA's resident drunk John Daly can be found partying when in town. We parked and walked to the front gate, arriving around 7:45. Gates were scheduled to open at 8, but they let us in as soon as we got there. I was amazed by the scene at the main entrance. There was a row of approximately 30 metal scanners, like the ones you walk through when going through airport security. Each person entering the course had to empty their pockets and pass through a scanner before getting their badge scanned. If anyone has a doubt about the seriousness of the tournament, it is laid to rest right there at the gate.
After successfully making it through security, we passed by the practice range and got our first look at the pros. Phil Mickleson was out on the practice green early, and we watched him for a few minutes before moving closer to the course.
We all agreed that the first order of business was to walk the front nine, no small task considering its length of over 3,700 yards. We made our way through the first few holes without seeing any golfers because, due to the early time, none were on the course.
After we reached the back edge of the course and examined the 6th hole, we noticed that some of the first groups, who had started on the back 9, were making their way down 15 and onto 16. We took a break from our walk to stand to the left of 16 and watch a couple of groups. This was one of the many cool spots on the course because from where we stood, we could see the 15th green, all of the par 3 16th, as well as the tee box on the 17th hole. This was also one of my favorite stops on the course because of the action that 16 presents in the practice rounds. The hole is entirely over water, so after hitting their tee shots, the golfers would drop a second ball on the tee box side of the pond and hit it so that it skipped across the water and onto the green, much to the delight of the spectators.
After watching a few groups play through on 16, we made our way back over to 6 to see a few groups who had started on the front nine and were beginning to catch up to us. The 6th hole was fun to watch because it has one of the toughest greens on the course. The hole placement on this particular day was an easier one, but after getting their original shot into the hole, the players would stick tees in the ground at the future hole locations to practice putting to that spot. One place they had a tee was on the far right of the green where the elevation is 15-20 feet higher than on the far left. When the flag is there, players have to hit into about a 10'x10' area from the tee box, which is 180 yards away. This hole was the first to make me truly realize the immense challenges that Augusta National presents to golfers, and likewise, the incredible skill that it takes to compete on such a course.
After spending about half an hour watching groups play through 6 and tee off on 7, we made our first stop of the day at the concession stand. I was amazed by the reasonable prices at the concession stands around the course. If you've been to any type of sporting event, you know that it typically costs an arm and a leg to eat inside the stadium/arena/ballpark, but this was certainly not the case at Augusta National. Throughout the day, I enjoyed a lemonade, two sweet teas, one of Augusta's famous pimiento cheese sandwiches, as well as two sugar cookies with Georgia peach ice cream, all for a grand total of eight dollars. (By the way, I think it's a rule that you can eat anything at The Masters and it doesn't count, hence the very unhealthy splurge.)
When we ended up at the clubhouse after finishing our trek through the front nine, we decided to head towards the infamous Amen Corner and check out a few of the holes on the way. After watching a few players finish number 18, we cut over to the 10th hole, which runs almost parallel to the 18th. While there we went to the spot where Bubba Watson hit the now-famous hook shot out of the trees to set up his par on the second playoff hole to win the 2012 Masters. While famous shots like that one look awfully tough on television, they look even tougher in person. Throughout the day I was able to see many spots where famous shots have been hit in recent years, such as Phil Mickleson's second shot on 13 in 2010, Tiger's birdie chip on 16 in 2005, and the aforementioned shot by Bubba on 10 in 2012. To see these places in person made me appreciate even more the skill of the professionals who have successfully taken on Augusta National over the years.
After watching some action from the grandstands on Amen Corner, we wandered around the course for a while and ended up back at the clubhouse at the front of the course. From there we made our way over to the Par 3 course, where the annual Par 3 contest is held. The crowds at the event were larger than normal due to the fact that crowd favorite Tiger Woods was participating in the event for the first time since 2004. We attempted to catch up with Jason Dufner, a Tour favorite of the whole group because of his Auburn ties, but he had finished the nine-hole course before we got there. From there we made the short walk to Founder's Circle, the players' entrance that is famous for the azaleas arranged in the Masters logo, where we had a picture taken in front of the clubhouse. While walking back around to the course, we saw Roger Goodell, the NFL commissioner, making his way out onto the course. Seeing such a powerful sports personality would usually be a cool experience for someone who loves sports as much as I do, but given my dislike of Goodell for his handling (or mishandling) of last year's domestic violence issues, it was anything but the highlight of the day.
After wandering around the course for a while longer, we made our way to the back of the course (we did A LOT of walking, about 7-8 miles over the course of the day) to visit the gift shop. The gift shop is not as reasonable as the concessions, but it was still important to get some memorabilia because the Masters logo is the only one I know of in sports that you have to purchase on site. I left with a golf polo, a hat, and a coffee mug. After leaving the gift shop, we made our final stop for concessions and made our way back to Amen Corner for the final time. On the way, we ran into the always-lovable Tommy Tuberville and his long-time running backs coach Eddie Gran, who were as nice as I could have ever imagined. I had never met Tommy, but after we approached him and he saw our Auburn shirts, we carried on a lighthearted conversation for five to ten minutes.
After saying goodbye to Coach Tuberville and Coach Gran, we spent a few minutes sitting on the 12th hole before making our way back to the front. On the long walk back to the front of the course, I took all of the mental snapshots of the beautiful course that my brain could hold. We finally made it back to the clubhouse, past the massive scoreboard, past the practice range at the entrance, and out of Augusta National Golf Club.
Visiting Augusta National was one of the greatest experiences I've ever had, and something that I hope every golf fan has an opportunity to do at least once in their life. The beauty, the pageantry, and the difficulty of the course make it one of the greatest places in the world of sports, and I hope I am privileged enough to go back many more times in the future.
After watching some action from the grandstands on Amen Corner, we wandered around the course for a while and ended up back at the clubhouse at the front of the course. From there we made our way over to the Par 3 course, where the annual Par 3 contest is held. The crowds at the event were larger than normal due to the fact that crowd favorite Tiger Woods was participating in the event for the first time since 2004. We attempted to catch up with Jason Dufner, a Tour favorite of the whole group because of his Auburn ties, but he had finished the nine-hole course before we got there. From there we made the short walk to Founder's Circle, the players' entrance that is famous for the azaleas arranged in the Masters logo, where we had a picture taken in front of the clubhouse. While walking back around to the course, we saw Roger Goodell, the NFL commissioner, making his way out onto the course. Seeing such a powerful sports personality would usually be a cool experience for someone who loves sports as much as I do, but given my dislike of Goodell for his handling (or mishandling) of last year's domestic violence issues, it was anything but the highlight of the day.
After wandering around the course for a while longer, we made our way to the back of the course (we did A LOT of walking, about 7-8 miles over the course of the day) to visit the gift shop. The gift shop is not as reasonable as the concessions, but it was still important to get some memorabilia because the Masters logo is the only one I know of in sports that you have to purchase on site. I left with a golf polo, a hat, and a coffee mug. After leaving the gift shop, we made our final stop for concessions and made our way back to Amen Corner for the final time. On the way, we ran into the always-lovable Tommy Tuberville and his long-time running backs coach Eddie Gran, who were as nice as I could have ever imagined. I had never met Tommy, but after we approached him and he saw our Auburn shirts, we carried on a lighthearted conversation for five to ten minutes.
After saying goodbye to Coach Tuberville and Coach Gran, we spent a few minutes sitting on the 12th hole before making our way back to the front. On the long walk back to the front of the course, I took all of the mental snapshots of the beautiful course that my brain could hold. We finally made it back to the clubhouse, past the massive scoreboard, past the practice range at the entrance, and out of Augusta National Golf Club.
Visiting Augusta National was one of the greatest experiences I've ever had, and something that I hope every golf fan has an opportunity to do at least once in their life. The beauty, the pageantry, and the difficulty of the course make it one of the greatest places in the world of sports, and I hope I am privileged enough to go back many more times in the future.
