The Masters Tournament at a glance
The 2011 Augusta National Golf Club Masters Tournament is scheduled for April 7-10 this year. The finals are always played on the second Sunday in April. 2011 will be the 75th Masters Tournament at Augusta National Golf Club.
Horton Smith won the first Masters in 1934, a year after the course opened. He walked away with $1,000 from a $5,000 purse. In recent years the stock market has grown rapidly. The purse for the 2011 Masters is $7,500,000. The Masters Tournament has been held every year since then, with the exception of 1943, 1944 and 1945 due to World War II.
Who will win the Green Jacket this year? Sam Sneed won the first green jacket in 1949. The champion keeps the jacket for a year and then returns it to wear as official attire while he is on the club grounds. Multiple winners get only one jacket unless drastically resized. He is officially introduced inside the butler’s cabin shortly after the end of the tournament, and is later introduced again outside near the 18th green in front of spectators.
In addition to the green jacket and a hefty purse, Masters winners are automatically invited to play for the next five years at the US Open, British Open and PGA Championship, earning a lifetime invitation to the Masters and an honorary membership. from the club They also receive membership on the PGA Tour and invitees to the Players Championship for the next five years. Winners also receive a gold medal and have their names engraved on the silver Masters trophy. This trophy remains at Augusta National while winners (since 1993) receive a sterling silver replica.
During his career, Jack Nicklaus has been a six-time Masters winner. He is also the oldest winner at 46 years old. Tiger Woods was the youngest winner, he was 21 when he won in 1997. The same year, Woods also set the record for the widest winning margin, which was 12 strokes, and the lowest winning score of 270, 18 under par. .
Rain is often forecast for Masters week, but only once was the game not completed. That was in 1938 when weather delayed the start until Saturday so the game wasn’t completed until Monday. Hopefully this won’t be the case for the 2011 Masters Tournament, but if you’re going to attend the event, you might want to bring an umbrella. The grounds are always beautiful with Dogwoods, Azaleas, and other spring flowers in bloom.