The Masters

Masters Week


Some years back before my hubby retired we were privileged to attend the Masters each year. This was because the business he was affiliated with did work for Augusta National and the club provided him with clubhouse passes with access to all the tournament events

What a grand time this was. We drove into Augusta National up the driveway known as "Magnolia Lane". A sense of history enveloped us on those beautiful April mornings.

We were invited into the antebellum house that served as the clubhouse and onto the patio and lawn outside which overlooked the magnificent green course. Some mornings we had a full southern breakfast in the dining room at the clubhouse. And several times we had dinner there too. We enjoyed drinks while relaxing at tables underneath magnificant old oak trees.

We walked the course with the crowds of avid golf fans. The stillness and quiet while one of the players was teeing off and especially as they putted was silent as a pin dropping.

It is said that nowhere on earth do golf fans behave in such a genteel manner as at the Masters. Tickets are ao hard to come by no one wants to take a chance of losing their tickets permanently by misbehaving. Tickets are in such demand that the waiting list has been closed for decades.


"'The main driveway leading from Washington Road to the course's clubhouse. The lane is flanked on either side by 61 magnolia trees, each grown from seeds planted by the Berckmans family in the 1850s. Magnolia Lane is 330 yards (300 m) long and was paved in 1947."

The Big Oak Tree"
"The big oak tree" is on the golf course side of the clubhouse and is approximately 150-160 years old. The tree was planted in the 1850s

"Augusta National is regarded as one of the most revered golf courses on the PGA Tour. Since the Masters is held at the same venue every year, patrons have the unique opportunity to become familiar with the course, something the other three rotating majors do not afford. The club itself invites a select few members to join each year, but it is not possible to request a membership directly.

The course is well known for its botanic beauty, being lined with stunning azaleas and hundred year old trees. As the Masters is held on the first weekend following the first full week in April, the trees and shrubs bordering the course are always in full bloom during the tournament. Each hole on the course is named after the tree or shrub with which it has become associated:

Hole # Name Par Yards Meters
1 Tea Olive 4 455 416
2 Pink Dogwood 5 575 526
3 Flowering Peach 4 350 320
4 Flowering Crab Apple 3 240 219
5 Magnolia 4 455 416
6 Juniper 3 180 165
7 Pampas 4 450 411
8 Yellow Jasmine 5 570 521
9 Carolina Cherry "