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Masters Time And All Is Right With The World

© Bill Howard

This is Masters weekend. The faithful among us will be glued to our televisions watching the field play the familiar holes of the back nine. If, like me, you've never had the good fortune to go to Augusta National for the Masters, you still know the track pretty well.

The Masters is unique in that it is the only major played on the same course year in and year out. The British Open has a set rotation and we see the courses every so often. Only a few holes muscle into our memories on a permanent basis. The US Open has a sort of unofficial rotation and we see these courses only occasionally as well. The PGA is all over the map. Its course selection process defies logic and the PGA Championship is contested over forgettable courses far too often.

Augusta National graces our living rooms and our imaginations every spring. It holds an unassailable place in our hearts because we see the best players in the world play the same holes every year. And we know more than just the holes, we know the perils and pitfalls of the individual shots.

As you watch the tournament unfold, someone will have the chip shot that Larry Mize holed to beat Norman in their playoff. You'll recognize the shot as soon as the ball in question lands to the right of the eleventh green.

One of the leaders will drive his ball into the fairway trap on 18. He'll be facing the shot Sandy Lyle had when he birdied 18 to win. When the drive in question rolls to a stop, you'll recall the shot Lyle hit, and you'll also fully recognize the rarity of that particular shot being executed properly.

You as a viewer will know when a player is dead around the green. You know which putts are impossible, and which are simply very scary.

This is what makes the Masters the best of the majors from a fan s standpoint. We share a knowledge of the playing field. If I miss the Saturday telecast and am later told that so and so was cruising until he hit a bad tee shot on 12, I want to know where on the twelfth he hit it. Back bunker? Up in the azaleas a la Curtis Strange? Short on the bank a la Fred Couples? Or simply wet a la players too numerous to mention?

You see, our intimate acquaintance with Augusta National makes us ravenously hungry for more detail. The only way to satisfy that hunger is to watch the telecast every year.

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