AUGUSTA, Ga. — Tuesday night, the most exclusive group at one of America’s most private clubs hosted its annual dinner. They drank wine and enjoyed a menu chosen by its new member, a traditional Basque feast that spoke of his ancestors.
They sat and told stories. From Seve Ballesteros, a Spaniard who played golf four decades ago with such joy and artistry that he defied convention and forged his own path. He was a member of this group once, but he was removed too soon. Those who knew him will never tire of talking about him, and those who didn’t, including Jon Rahm, this evening’s best man, will hang on every word of these stories.
It was a wonderful evening full of laughter and camaraderie, said those who attended the Champions Dinner at the 88th Masters, and at the end, Tom Watson asked Augusta National Golf Club President Fred Ridley if he didn’t didn’t mind Watson talking to the other. 33 men in the room. Ridley urged him to do so.
“I look around and see a wonderful experience that everyone is having. They are jovial. They’re having a good time. They laugh. I said, “Isn’t it good to be together again?” “, Watson said.
There was a pall across the room as the eight-time major champion spoke those words, and then Raymond Floyd, 81 and the 1976 Masters champion, stood and said his goodbyes. The night ended and the new normal returned.
Professional golf is broken. The PGA Tour here and the LIV there. There are four events a year where all the best players in the game share a driving range. Everyone is richer than two years ago, but at what cost? Even those who swear that a deal must be made to mend fences may remain naive about the extent to which their greed was the original sin.
It cannot continue to survive like this. I know that. Tom Watson knows it. Do they know it?
Watson’s ambition, the reason he stood up and said those words, was because he hoped Jordan Spieth, Phil Mickelson, Tiger Woods, Scottie Scheffler and Jon Rahm were all listening. The players are in control. They can bring us together again. Now what are they going to do about it?
“I hope the players themselves have taken that to say, you know, we have to do something. We have to do something,” Watson said.
Watson, Jack Nicklaus and Gary Player began this Masters Thursday with a tee shot, a symbol of their place in golf and the respect the game has for each of them. They have won titles and trophies all over the world and amassed fortunes in the process. Today’s gamers shouldn’t be reluctant to do the same, but we can also rightly wonder when enough is enough and when legacy will matter more than a new yacht.
Augusta National is a club where every member has money but no amount of money can make you a member. This is not a club immune to progress, knowing that while original architects Alister MacKenzie and Bobby Jones created a masterpiece, they also did so 92 years ago. There is always tinkering with these 18 holes, lengthening them or removing or adding trees. This extends to the customer experience, where millions are invested to improve efficiency, but a cup of Crow’s Nest beer will cost you $6 and a chili and cheese sandwich $1.50.
There is something to learn in this. The most important thing is always the most important thing and you should never forget that.
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Something about golf is inherently personal: you keep your score, and no one else’s. “You hit him. You have to go chase him,” Nicklaus said. But it’s also a game where everything seems connected, each shot and turn a memory of a time, a place, and the enterprise. It’s a big reason why the Masters feels so much bigger than the other three majors, with the consistent venue giving us a common language to revisit each April.
This is my first Master’s degree. On Wednesday afternoon, with most of the action happening on the other side of the par 3 course, I strolled over to Amen Corner. I sat in a mostly empty stand and watched it, feeling the wind pick up and watching the pine trees gently sway around me. I thought about my dad, who we lost in 2020, and how much he would have loved it. How many Masters he’s watched on TV, and how the men he watched in their prime at old Bing Crosby Clambake are now among the oldest in green jackets.
I felt connected to my father in that moment. I’m not the only one who had a similar experience, wearing their dad’s old golf shoes or their mom’s favorite hat on their first trip to Augusta National and understanding it all. That’s what this place does for us, the power in its history and its commitment to it.
We all feel together again at the Masters. It would be nice if we could feel this more often.
(Top photo: Courtesy of Augusta National Golf Club)