Learn some of the Unique Facts about the Masters that make it so special

For nearly a century, Augusta National has hosted some of the sport’s most incredible moments. However, it’s the aura and mystic of the course that may be its most popular feature. Read about some of our favorite facts and tidbits about the tournament and the incredible course that hosts it.

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1) 1987 Masters Champion Larry Mize was born in Augusta, Georgia. His tournament winning chip shot remains one of the most famous shots in golf history.

2) Cell phones are forbidden on the course. Since patrons have to go through metal detectors upon entrance, those who try to sneak one in will be caught. However, there are several call boxes located on the course where you can make outgoing calls.

3) Magnolia Lane extends from the entrance gate on Washington Road to the clubhouse. The large magnolia trees that line both sides of the 330-yard road date to the late 1850s. 

4) Running is forbidden at Augusta National, as are backwards hats. Denim is discouraged.

5) An estimated 80,000 plants have been added since the course was built.

6) Spain and South Africa are tied for the second most Masters by a single nation, with 5 each.

7) Attendees of the Masters are not “fans,” they are “patrons” and are to be referred to as such.

8) As of 2021, there has yet to be a winner of the both the Par 3 contest and the Masters in the same year.

9) 2018 Masters Champion Patrick Reed attended college in Augusta. 

10) Alister Mackenzie of Scotland designed the course. Unfortunately, he never saw his famous course completed. He died January 6th 1934, just 2 months before the Inaugural Masters Tournament.

11) On the course, domestic beers are served in white plastic cups while imported beers are served in green plastic cups.

12) Jack Nicklaus has the most Masters Tournament wins with six victories.

13) Vijay Singh was the last player to win the tournament playing with glasses, accomplished in 2000.

14) The tournament is normally scheduled for the first full week (Sunday to Sunday) in April. In 2020, the tournament was postponed to November 12th – 15th due to Covid-19.

15) During the unique November Masters in 2020, Dustin Johnson tallied the lowest four round total in tournament history, an incredible 268. Tiger Woods and Jordan Spieth, who won in 2015 champ, previously shared the record for the lowest 72-hole score: 270.

16) Golf enthusiast Dwight Eisenhower is the only U.S. president to have been a club member. 

17) In 1983, President Ronald Reagan held a meeting with his advisors in Eisenhower’s cabin to discuss the rising Grenada situation. A photo (HERE) of the President being briefed is on display at the cabin.

18) Former University of South Carolina football coaches Lou Holtz and Steve Spurrier were members at Augusta National during their time as head coach in Columbia.

19) Horton Smith won the first tournament in 1934.

20) The daily pass cost $2.20 with taxes in 1934.

21) Amen Corner refers to holes No. 11, 12 and 13. This famous nickname was the brain child of Sports Illustrated writer Herbert Warren Wind during the 1958 tournament. 

22) Wind borrowed the name from an old jazz recording called “Shouting at Amen Corner.”

23) There are three dedicated bridges at Augusta National

• The Sarazen Bridge at hole No. 15 — to honor Gene Sarazen’s double eagle there during the 1935 Masters
• The Hogan Bridge at the No. 12 green — to honor Ben Hogan’s then record score of 274 in 1953
• Nelson Bridge at the No. 13 tee — to honor Byron Nelson’s performance on holes No. 12 and 13 when he won the 1937 Masters

24) The tournament was not played during the years 1943, 1944 and 1945 because of World War II. To help with the war effort, turkey and cattle were raised on the Augusta National Grounds.

25) Members of a bridge building engineering crew in Erwin Rommel’s German Akrika Corps helped erect the Nelson bridge over the 13th hole.

26) There is a lone palm tree on the course, located by the 4th green.

27) Augusta National is closed from the middle of May to the middle of October

28) There are 61 magnolia trees along Magnolia Lane. In 2011, one of the trees was struck by lightning during an overnight storm. By the time the gates opened the next morning for a practice round, the tree had not only been uprooted, it had been completely replaced as well.

29) Founders Circle is at the base of the flagpole in front of the clubhouse. Two plaques there honor the Masters’ founders: Bob Jones and Clifford Roberts.

30) Tiger Woods was the youngest player to win a Masters Tournament, at 21 years, 3 months and 14 days – in 1997.

31) Each hole is named after a plant or shrub that adorns it. For example, No. 3 is called “Flowering Crab Apple.” 

32)  In 1990, Fanny Sunesson became the first and only female caddie to win at the Masters. She worked with England’s Nick Faldo.

33) CBS began televising the Masters in 1956.

34) During his eight-year term, President Eisenhower visited ANGC 29 times and played 210 times. His cabin was designed by the Secret Service.

35) Magnolia Lane was a gravel road when Augusta National opened. It was paved in 1947.

36) Until 1980, Gary Player of South Africa was the only non-American to win the Masters, a feat that he accomplished three times (1961, 1974, 1978).

37) In 2021, Rory McIlroy hit an errant shot that hit a spectator. That spectator was his own father, video here.

38) Former Chairman of Augusta National Billy Payne was also the President and CEO of the 1996 Atlanta Olympics Organizing Committee.

39) The tournament was not played during the years 1943, 1944 and 1945 because of World War II. To help with the war effort, turkey and cattle were raised on the Augusta National Grounds.

40) The Masters has gone to extra holes an incredible 21% of the time.

41) When the Masters was first played, the club had 76 members.

42) 3 of the 4 countries that make up the United Kingdom have produced a Masters Champion: England (Nick Faldo, Danny Willett), Scotland (Sandy Lyle), and Wales (Ian Woosnam). In 2011, Northern Ireland’s Rory McIlroy had a 4 stroke lead going into the final round before finishing 15th.

43) A year after winning the Masters, Sergio Garcia made an octuple-bogey 13 on the 15th hole.

44) The course record for a single round is 63, accompanied by Nick Price in 1986 and Greg Norman in 1996. Interestingly, neither won the tournament.

45) Condoleezza Rice and Darla Moore were the inaugural women members, joining the club in 2012.

46) In 1983, 18-year-old college student Liz Archer, on the bag for her father, 1969 Masters champion George Archer, became the first female caddie at the Masters Tournament.

47) Nicklaus became the oldest player to win a Masters Tournament, at 46 years, 2 months and 23 days – in 1986

48) Members of Augusta National are present on the course during the tournament to assist patrons. The tradition of members wearing green jackets began in 1937, when jackets were purchased from New York’s Brooks Uniform Co. The idea was that Masters patrons easily could see members who would have accurate information.

49) The color of the ANGC jacket has changed over the years from forest green to hunter green. Due to the change in manufacturers and tailors the green color of the jacket has many different hues.

50) Jack Nicklaus won six green jackets (1963, ’65, ’66, ’72, ’75, ’86) in three different decades.

51) A bid to host the 1934 U.S. Open failed after the course was not deemed up to par. Pun intended. 

52) Ernie Els got off to a rough start in 2016, scoring a nine on the first hole as a result of 6 putts.

53) Sam Snead won the first Par-3 Contest in 1960.

54) The Champions Dinner is for members of the Masters Club, those who have won a Masters Tournament, and is hosted by the defending champion on Tuesday of Masters week.

55) As is tradition, 1985 Masters winner Bernard Langer of Germany chose the menu at the 1986 Champions Dinner. His choices reflected some of his favorite German dishes, including wiener schnitze and Black Forest cake.

56) They took a $70,000 option on a 365-acre property called Fruitland Nurseries in Augusta, Ga. Jones and Construction began in 1931. The course opened in 1932 with limited play. Formal opening was January 1933. 

57) One of the more famous traits of the tournament are the prices for food/beverages reflect the nostalgia of the tournament. In 2021, the famous egg salad and pimento sandwiches were only $1.50 each. The most expensive sandwich is a grilled chicken wrap and that’s $3.

58) Magnolia Lane is 330 yards long.

59) In 1935, Gene Sarazen made “the shot heard ’round the world,” a double eagle on the par-5 15th. Legend has it that the blacksmith who was engraving the trophy was told to stop due to Sarazen’s sudden rush back into contention. He would eventually win the tournament.

60) Before the start of the Masters in 1955, each player in the field went to the 15th to see if they could duplicate Sarazen’s double eagle. Nobody was able to accomplish the feat, but Freddie Haas Jr. was the winner, hitting his second shot to just four feet of the hole.

61) The 10 cabins located on the grounds of Augusta National provide lodging for members and their guests. The most famous is Butler’s Cabin, where the green jacket is awarded.

62) In 1949, the first Green Jacket was awarded to that year’s Masters champion, Sam Snead.

63) 1982 was the first year that golfers were allowed to bring their own caddies. Prior to that, the professionals were assigned local caddies. Caddies must abide by Augusta rules and wear the customary white jump suits.

64) The first tournament was held March, 22 1934. Since 1940 however, the Masters was scheduled for the first full week (Sunday – Sunday) in April each year. The Masters Tournament was called the “Augusta National Invitational” for the first five years (1934-1938).

65) The Masters was the first tournament to be covered nationwide on radio. It was the first to use bleachers. It was also the fist to use on-course scoreboards.

66) Canadian Mike Weir, the 2003 champion, remains the only North American winner from outside of the United States.

67) As with most of Georgia, the pine tree is the most visible tree at Augusta. Several species grow along the course, including: Loblolly Pines, Shortleaf Pines, Slash Pines, Longleaf Pines, Eastern White Pines.

68) Gary Player is the only Masters Winner to not have his Jacket locked up at Augusta. It can be seen at the World Golf Hall of Fame in St. Augustine, FL. 

69) Horton Smith won the first Masters with a final score of 284.

70) Zach Johnson’s score of 289 in 2007 is the the highest winning total in tournament history.

71)  “The big oak tree” on the golf course side of the clubhouse was planted in the 1850’s.

72) No tipping is allowed at Augusta National – a rule that dates back to the days of co-founder Clifford Roberts, who didn’t want members to be treated differently based on how much they tipped.

73) There have been nine other two-time winners of the event: Horton Smith (1934, ‘36) Byron Nelson (1937, ’42), Ben Hogan (1951, ’53), Tom Watson (1977, ’81), Seve Ballesteros (1980, ’83), Ben Crenshaw (1984, ’95), Bernhard Langer (1985, ’93), José María Olazábal (1994, ’99) and Bubba Watson (2012, ’14).

74) In 2020, ESPN’s popular college football show “Game Day” took advantage of the rescheduled dates and hosted the show on the Augusta National grounds.

75) Rae’s Creek was named after John Rae. The creek runs in front of the No. 12 green, has a tributary at the No. 13 tee, and passes by the back of the No. 11 green. Rae’s house kept residents safe during local native attacks in the area. It was the furthest fortress up the Savannah River from Fort Augusta

76) In 1994, an authentic 1950s Masters jacket was found in a Toronto thrift store one sale for $5. The new owner sold the jacket at auction for $140,000.

77) The famous 10th hole, known as Camellia, has an extreme drop from the tee box to fairway. In fact, the drop is the exact same distance as the Statue of Liberty.

78) During World War 2, Forty-two German POW’s were brought in to restore the course after the livestock kept on the grounds 

79) In 2013, Adam Scott became the first Masters champion from Australia. He won a playoff in a downpour to defeat Argentina’s Angel Cabrera, the 2009 champion.

80) Scott’s victory means that each continent has produced a Masters champion.

81) After his victory in the 2014 Masters, Bubba Watson celebrated with a meal at popular Southeast diner Waffle House.

82) Announcers Jack Whitaker and Gary McCord were removed from their duties for failure to uphold the Masters unique terminology on-air.

83) A Jack Nicklaus plaque, honoring the six-time Masters champion, is affixed to a drinking fountain between holes 16 and 17.

84) An Arnold Palmer plaque, commemorating the play and contributions of the four-time Masters winner, is affixed to a drinking fountain behind the No. 16 tee

85) During the 85th Masters Tournament in 2021, Hideki Matsuyama became the first winner from Japan and just the second winner from an Asian nation. Vijay Singh of Fuji won in 2000.

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