Wednesday Practice Round at the Masters

Several weeks ago, I mentioned to David that our friends Doug and Annette had called to invite us to go with them to watch the golf tournament. Since we had seen them once before at the Quail Hollow tournament in Charlotte, my mind made the jump that we were talking about that tournament. We thought it would be a fun day so we were looking forward to going. Later, when I confirmed the date with Doug and Annette, they said it would be April 7th. When I relayed that info to David, he looked at me with that 'honey, listen closely to what I am saying' look. Speaking slowly, he said, "April 7th is a practice round at the MASTERS".

So, early Wednesday morning, we left for Augusta. There was discussion about which route to take and the general agreement was to go by GPS. I piped in that I really enjoyed getting off the interstate to see the countryside. After crossing Turkey Creek and passing by Plum Branch, Doug said, "Sally you must be having a bang up time". As David says, "sometimes GPS doesn't use common sense".

But we had a fun ride with good conversation. Several phone calls were made and taken during our ride. At Augusta, cell phones are NOT allowed. Period. And being out of contact puts some of us on edge. One caller advised "If God or Jesus calls, I'll tell them you are in Augusta". Doug's comeback was, "Don't worry about that. They will be there."

So after a fun ride, we arrived in Augusta at the Masters Tournament. This is a most unusual sporting event. First of all, there is NO CHARGE for parking. Tickets are hard to get (by lottery) but they are not expensive (unless you buy from a scalper). They don't sell so many tickets that the crowds are miserable. And then there are the concession stands. You can buy a sandwich for $1.50. And the specialties are egg salad or pimiento cheese on white bread. Very Southern. Very Traditional.

The Masters is about golf, but it is also about tradition. The winner gets a green sport coat. They don't use LED scoreboards, but still do it by hand. All of the caddies wear white jumpsuits. It is so beautiful there, I can't describe it. And they take pride in taking care of it. Even on a practice round, after golfers putted out, several men would run out on the green to pick up any leaf or pine needle that had fallen. There are alot of beautiful flowering plants and trees at the Masters.

I loved the way Tom Sorensen with the Charlotte Observer talked about the trees. He wrote that though he didn't know the names of the varieties of trees, he did recognize their beauty. He called them the pines and the not-pines.

But of all the traditions, two that I was totally unaware of intrigued me the most - golfball skipping on #16 and the Par Three Tournament.

#16 is a low flat fairway that is mostly water. There were turtles lounging around the edges. The tee is on one end of the water and the green on the other. There is a wee tiny bit of grass between the tee and water. There are stands and shady areas for spectators to sit. When a golf group comes up, they tee off. Then the crowd starts chanting "Skip Skip Skip". Some of the players ignore the moment and walk on to the green. Other golfers give a shrug and a grin and walk to the edge of the water. Everyone loves the golfers who walk to the water. The crowd goes wild and when the golfers have their clubs and balls ready, the crowd - in unison - yells ONE - TWO - THREE! The golfer swings and the ball 'Skips'; just like a little boy skipping rocks across a pond. If the ball skips up to the green the crowd goes wild. If it doesn't, the crowd still cheers the golfers who try it. I loved this. At that moment, those professional golfers are just little boys playing and having fun.

On Wednesdays, the practice round at the Masters includes a Par Three Tournament. Besides the beautiful 18 hole course at the Masters, there is another beautiful Par 3 course. This land is really hilly. At the Par three course if you stand on one of the hills, you can see the tee and the green for both #8 and #9, so you can watch the action of 2 tees and 2 greens. And, since it is a Par 3 course, the players come through really fast.

But, the real fun of the Par 3 tournament is that the golfers can bring special 'caddies' with them. These caddies are dressed in the traditional white jumpsuits with the golfer name on the back. But these caddies might be a 3 year old daughter, 5 year old son, girlfriend, brother, wife or dad. So you get to watch these professional golfers goofing off and having fun with their families. Sometimes they let their 'caddy' hit the ball and sometimes they help them hit it. When these special caddies make a shot, the crowd roars like it is a hole in one to win a sudden death.

Scott Verplank's darling little daughter was having a ball. There were some Japanese and Italian players with various family that were fun to watch. Fuzzy Zoeller was working the crowd like a presidential candidate. He shook hands and signed autographs like the pro that he is. But the stars of the Par 3 were Jack Nicklaus, Arnold Palmer and Gary Player. They were a classic threesome that posed on the tee boxes so that everyone could get a good picture.

Spectator's cameras are not allowed after Wednesday at the Masters. Starting Thursday the Masters is about serious golf and the Masters tradition.

But, Wednesday's practice round at the Masters is also about tradition; it is all about fun and family.