History of Augusta Golf Club
Situated in Augusta, Georgia, Augusta National Golf Course is considered one of the top courses. Bobby Jones founded and designed it along with Alister MacKenzie and Clifford Roberts. Jones is known as the most prominent player in golf history. MacKenzie was the first designer while Clifford was the investor. The team started the project in Augusta 1931, and the course was ready in early 1993 for playing. MacKenzie died before the first edition of the Masters and could not see even a single event in Augusta course. Since 1934 Augusta is hosting The Masters Open Championship which is one of the four major tournaments. The Master's open is the only major championship which is managed by a private golf club, PGA manages the remaining three.
As course is built on a nursey, its every hole is named after a bush or a plant/tree. Hole number 2; Pink Dogwood is the longest hole in the course spanning 575 meters. Golden Bell; hole number 12 is the shortest one with 155 meters of length. Two types of tees are here in Augusta Club; Black for the Masters while white for the members. Augusta's total score is 72 par since its inauguration.
After the latest changes in 2009, 74356m is the total length of the course while front and back nine are almost equal in length; 3725m and 3710 respectively. Hole 10, Camellia was designed by Perry Maxwell and is considered as the toughest one.
There is also a nine-hole golf course in Augusta having all par three. Invited participants play this course with their families before the actual event starts. Clifford Roberts who was a founding member of the Augusta Golf Club and served as a chairman from 1931 to 1976, committed suicide here in this mini-course. He wanted to keep black people as caddies while white people as invited players, this unofficial rule was under practice until 1975 when Lee Elder, a black American participated in the tournament.
No woman was allowed to be a member of the course until 2012. Condoleeza Rice and Darla Moore are the first two female members. Rice is a former secretary in the US government while Moore is a businesswoman. No one is allowed to become a member of the club unless invited or wins the Masters. Augusta is changing some of its rules in recent years like in 2019's edition some invited amateur ladies are going to participate for the first time. It looks soon professional females golfers would also be playing in Augusta Golf Course.
Since 1949 a green jacket is awarded to every winner of The Masters, before this, it was solely entitled to the members of the club to distinguish them from the guests. In the Butler Cabin green jackets are placed inside the lockers along with the names of winners.
During World War II Augusta club was fully closed. No event was happening from 1943 to 1945. In this time the course was used to raise turkeys and cows to provide food aid to soldiers.
The best score of four days tournament is 276; 18 under par, achieved by Tiger Woods in 1997 and Jordon Spieth in 2015, and the best round is 63, scored by Nick Price and Greg Norman. Jack Nicklaus has the record of the Most wins in the Augusta. He grabbed the title six times.
The first winner in Augusta was Horton Smith who earned a cash prize of 15,00 US dollars. Americans ruled in Augusta for the first 24 years, and no foreigner could win a single event. Gary Player of South Africa was the first one to do so when he defeated Arnold Palmer in a close match. Initially, a 36 hole play-off match was required to break the tie for the first place, then it was changed with 18 hole match but now like any other golf tournament sudden-death playoff is being practiced to decide the winner.
Every year the Masters open is hosted in the Augusta club on the second week of the April. This year on the 11th of April, Patrick Reed is going to defend his title. Augusta National Club always comes with the best or one of the best cash prizes since its inauguration. The total cash prize is 11 million US dollar from which 18% is the winner's take home.
