The Masters

The Masters is coming. It's always the second weekend in April. It is not possible to overstate how important The Masters is to A Golfer. Their year is divided into: Before The Masters, The Masters, and After The Masters. If you are going to spend any time at all with A Golfer, you need to understand The Masters.

Scores of books have been written about this particular tournament, and I'm not going to rewrite the wheel here. But you need to know enough to understand why, when The Masters is on, you can't disturb A Golfer unless the house is on fire, or someone is in danger of bleeding to death.

So. Short history. There was A Golfer named Robert Tyre Jones Jr. Bobby Jones. He was arguable the greatest golfer who ever lived. Many books have been written about him, as well as several movies made about his life. An icon, both here and in the birthplace of golf, Scotland. Bobby Jones was from Atlanta, and when he retired from golf ( which he did at 28 ) he headed home. In 1933 he founded the Augusta National Golf Club in Augusta, Georgia. He got together with renown course designer Alister MacKenzie, and together they created what is, except for The Old Course at St. Andrews, the most revered golf course in the world. In 1934 Bobby Jones hosted the first Masters tournament. And because he was Bobby Jones the world's greatest golfers came to play. And so The Masters was born.

The Masters is TRADITION. Tradition as only southern, white males can do it. Golf has changed a lot since the days of Bobby Jones. The Masters has not. Augusta National is a private club. Not much has changed there since that first Masters. Women are still not allowed to become members. And we won't even get into the 'people of color' issues.

The Masters is not a PGA tour event( meaning the tournament itself is not managed by the PGA ), but every PGA tour player prays for an invitation, and no one will watch any other golf when The Masters is on, so the PGA prudently avoids having an official tournament on Masters weekend. Augusta National retains complete control over the tournament. It is an invitational, and if you get an invitation you play. You do NOT say

no to Augusta National. An invitation to play in The Masters is the most coveted piece of paper in golfdom. The winner of The Masters gets ( in addition to money and a trophy ) the coveted 'green jacket'. This is a green sport coat that is actually the official Augusta National attire, worn by club members. After you win you are allowed to keep the jacket for one year, then it must be returned to Augusta, and can only be worn when you are on the grounds. Did I mention that Augusta National is run by a bunch of very controlling southern white males? Augusta enforces a standard caddy uniform. All caddies are required to wear a white jumpsuit, green cap, and white tennis shoes. On the back of each jumpsuit is the players last name and a number. The caddy of the previous year's winner gets number 1. The other numbers are assigned in the order the players register.

In addition to everything else, Augusta National controls the TV coverage. CBS has televised the Masters every year since 1956. Initial coverage was only allowed on the final four holes. Coverage slowly increased, but coverage of the entire rounds on Sat. and Sun. didn't happen until 1993. In 1982 USA Network began coverage of the first and second rounds ( Thurs and Fri ), but it was produced by CBS. Beginning this year week day coverage moves to ESPN, but will still be jointly produced by CBS. Unlike other sporting events, who negotiate multi-year television contracts, the CBS/Masters contract is year by year. Augusta National insists it doesn't have any rules, or impose any mandates on CBS. However if CBS something Augusta National doesn't like they won't get The Masters the next year. That is a HUGE stick. Here are some of the 'not imposed' mandates: the gallery will be referred to as 'patrons', no discussion of any 'controversies' involving Augusta National, minimal commercial interruption( currently limited to 4 minutes per hour ), no promotions for other network programs, no blimps, no sponsored graphics shown on air, no on-course announcers, restrictions on the number of broadcast hours ( currently only 3 hours of coverage allowed on Thurs and Fri ) and if the tournament runs long coverage stays on the network ( as opposed to switching over to USA or The Golf Channel, as happens with other tournaments ). And of course there is the famous Gary McCord incident. Gary McCord is a very jovial former PGA tour player, who is part of the regular CBS announcer team. In 1995 he remarked, on air during The Masters, that the 17th green was so fast it seemed to have been bikini-waxed, and that body bags were located behind the green for players who missed their approach shot. Augusta National did not think this showed proper decorum, and informed CBS it would prefer if McCord was not present for any future Masters. CBS, of course, complied. Even David Fehery and Nick Faldo watch their P's and Q's at The Masters.

As for the coverage itself, well, I think it's sort of like watching a baseball game. There is a lot of time to fill when announcing a baseball game, and to fill it the announcers rely on baseball history and statistics. There is a lot of time to fill in a golf tournament, and if there is one thing The Masters has it's history. There are constant discussions of what happened on the same hole in years past with various players. In fact in general there is pretty much a constant stream of 'remember when'. The Masters is not so much about what's happening on the course right now, as it is about how what's happening on the course right now compares to what's happened in the past. TRADITION.

Here are some other Masters traditions. Every year The Champions dinner is held on the Tuesday evening before Thursdays first round. All (living) past champions attend the dinner, and the menu is chosen by the winner from the previous year. The previous year's winner always puts the jacket on the current winner. Which is interesting when someone wins 2 years in a row. Three players have done this, Jack Nicklaus, Nick Faldo and Tiger Woods. The older courses in Scotland/England/Ireland tend to have names for each hole, and the holes are referred to by those names, instead of by number. Augusta National has adapted this to a degree. The course is covered with various types of flowering shrubs, which are all in full bloom in April. Each hole is named for the shrub with which it is most associated. In addition, the 11th, 12th, and 13th holes are called 'The Amen Corner'. The reason for which I won't go into here, but you can find it in any book on The Masters.

Based on everything I've said you may think that, despite the importance of this tournament in the life of The Golfer, I see the whole thing as an example of southern white male hegemony and tend to avoid it. You would be wrong. In spite of, or perhaps even because of, all this strict adherence to Tradition, and enforcement of the Augusta National Way, The Masters actually represents all the best of golf. The players exhibit the utmost in courtesy, etiquette and, above all, respect for the game. The patrons are among the most knowledgeable and well behaved on the tour ( not least of which because if they are not they will very quickly be removed from the grounds, and never allowed to return ). And if you actually listen to the coverage you will learn more about the game, it's history, and the character of the people who have played it, than you will from reading 10 books on the subject. Golf has evolved through the years, and other tournaments have evolved with it. The Masters is the one time each year when everyone takes a step back and says 'This is where we came from, and this is how golf is at it's best. It can't be like this all the time, and quite frankly we don't want it to be. Things have to move on. But once a year there is The Masters'.

So, it will probably be a tough slog the first time you watch. You will say to yourself 'If I hear about The Butler Cabin one more time I am going to throw a golf ball at the TV'. But if you really want to understand golf and A Golfer, stick with it. I heard an interview with Jim Nantz once, where they asked him 'If CBS came up to you and said, it's time to let the younger folks start moving in. You need to give up  most of your announcing duties to others. You can keep on thing. What would it be?'  He answered 'Without hesitation, it wold be The Masters. There is nothing else like it in sports.'  And there isn't really.

Fortunately for you first timers Mr. Feherty and Mr. Faldo will be back, Mr. Feherty slightly the worse for wear. In The Household it is already set on the TIVO, and every minute will be watched with complete, undivided attention. Even by me.