My dear friends, Only ten days left for this years masters, when the years first and the most respected tournament will get under way on the tenth of April. So let us relive those moments where we the people enjoy at the maximum at the August National Golf club in Augusta Georgia.
Washington Road, which leads to Augusta national, is the busiest in Augusta. Georgia, though rarely do you see hordes of pedestrians and tented shops on both sides of the thoroughfare, as you do during the masters. The entire town comes alive for that one week in April. Nature plays its part too. Frosty winter gives way to flowery spring as colorful buds blossom across the three neighboring countries of Columbia, Richmond and Aiken, just in time for the masters.
Many of the houses, townhouses, apartments, hotels and dormitories in and around Augusta are rented out during tournament week. Preparation’s get under way sometime in February, and includes yard work, trimming of trees and shrubberies, and planting of new flowerbeds. It is believed that more than 5000 houses are rented out, some for as high as $50,000!
The season also heralds the lengthening of daylight hours and with the sun setting after 7.30 pm, you can spot golf enthusiasts with a can of beer or sipping their favorite wine in many restaurants and café’s – mast always full- along Washington Road. A popular haunt is Hooters; located down the road from Augusta National .It offers plenty of sights and good seafood.
All available spaces-lawns, yards, backyards-around the golf club are converted into parking lots. Near the venue, the average parking fee is about $20 a day. Compare this to a price of a ticket for a practice rounds-only $31 per day ($36 for the Wednesday)! Traffic snarls are common during the week. You can spot a variety of limousines, and close to a thousand private planes and jets parked at the two local airports.
Two distinguishing fashion statements of master’s week are the cigars and the hats. While the men puff away, women make their statement with colorful headwear.
And as the sun dips below the horizon right behind amen corner, spectators walk out with shopping bags in hand. When you visit Augusta, you don’t leave without a Masters souvenir. It is said the average shopper spends about $200, and nearly $20 million worth of merchandise gets sold! This is roughly the same amount of money that is spent on the tournament. Masters week brings in nearly $150 million to the local economy.
In a circular route extending six miles, you can see people holding up placards saying,’we need tickets, please!’ Though the badge (the tickets for the four days) cost $175, it is sold for several times that in the open market. On the last day, used tickets are worth $100 or more even at 7.30 pm in the evening!
Indeed, what football is to Brazil, golf is to Augusta. It is after all, the people that make the entire week memorable. It is they who transform Augusta, an otherwise quiet mid-sized town, into a globally renowned golf paradise. It is The People’s Masters.
“I LOVE THESE CONDITIONS. I JUST LOVE THESE CONDITIONS. YOU CAN MAKE ME PLAY AS MUCH GOLF IN THESE CONDITIONS.” JEEV MILKHA SINGH (INDIA), reveling in the Augusta chill.
This years masters starts from 10th to 13th of April. Lets enjoy it.
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