Augusta National reveals exclusive three-story facility behind practice range with historic memorabilia and underground garage access for 2026 Masters.
Tag: Augusta National
Rising star Asterix Talley heads to Augusta National Women’s Amateur next week off the back of excellent form at the Ford Championship in Phoenix.
English golfer Matt Fitzpatrick wins his third PGA Tour title with a 14-foot birdie putt on the final hole at Innisbrook Resort.
Rory McIlroy’s journey to claiming the career grand slam at Augusta National will be featured in a new Prime Video documentary launching next month.
The defending champion scouts Augusta National ahead of his title defense. Will Rory McIlroy repeat at The Masters?
Nine-year-old heart surgery survivor Madelyn meets Tiger Woods and checks off a major bucket list item with an autographed glove.
As the year progresses, The Masters in Augusta is getting closer and closer, and anticipation is growing – but so is nervousness. This also applies to Rory McIlroy, for whom the first major of the season is known to be of the highest importance. Now he has revealed how he will prepare for the important tournament this year.
Rory McIlroy is fully focused on The Masters
The legendary tournament at the tradition-rich Augusta National Golf Club takes place from April 10 to 13. In addition to the prestige and history, there is another very personal reason for the Northern Irishman: it is the only major that is still missing from his career Grand Slam. A victory would not only crown his career, but also elevate him to the ranks of the greatest golfers of all time. Alongside a Ryder Cup triumph in the USA and an Olympic gold medal, winning the green jacket is one of his three main goals. Every year, he focuses on this one week in April when he has the chance to finally win The Masters.
With his team’s TGL elimination, McIlroy can now focus entirely on preparation. In recent years, he has tried various approaches to get in peak physical condition. During a press conference at the Arnold Palmer Invitational, he discussed his current plans. He has no tournaments scheduled between next week’s PLAYERS Championship and the Masters, but that could still change:
“I don’t like the idea of having three weeks off going into the Masters, so I may add one event, but I’m still between what event that may be. But it really just depends on how these two weeks go and how I’m feeling about my game.”
“It feels a little different”
He emphasizes that it helps him to travel to Augusta in advance and spend time on the golf course: “You can spend as much time as you want around there, like on those days that you go up outside of the tournament. You’re not under any pressure from a time constraint, like having to get to media or having any other obligations.”
He continues: “It’s funny, when you want to spend six hours on a practice round it doesn’t feel like it’s that bad, but the week of it you don’t really want to be out there for six hours and it feels a little different.”
Hurricane Helene reached the US mainland on Thursday. The storm, classified as a level four storm, raged through several of the coastal states in the south-east of the USA and also reached wind speeds of up to 130 km/h in Augusta, Georgia. Severe damage was caused throughout the region, with the Augusta National Golf Club – venue of the US Masters – not being spared.
Augusta National: “Our Thoughts and Prayers are with Everyone Affected”
More and more photos and videos are appearing on social media showing possible damage to the golf course. It can be seen that a large number of trees have been uprooted, with the famous Magnolia Lane also likely to be affected according to drone footage. Newly planted trees in particular are exposed to an increased risk as they are not yet strongly rooted. Last year, during the US Masters 2023, three pine trees collapsed in the middle of the spectators, but fortunately no one was injured.
🚨🌲⬇️ #NEW: Trees are down at Augusta National Golf Club. (📸 shared by @EurekaEarthPlus) pic.twitter.com/GIC99P6t0o
— NUCLR GOLF (@NUCLRGOLF) September 27, 2024
Drone footage of Magnolia Lane at Augusta National:
🚨🚁⛳️#NEW: Drone footage shows the devastation to Augusta National’s Magnolia Lane (video via MrHushpuppy / YouTube) pic.twitter.com/uhKifmThZ4
— NUCLR GOLF (@NUCLRGOLF) September 28, 2024
In addition, images on social media show that the small Rae’s Creek, which flows through the golf course, has swollen into a raging river. The masses of water could cause considerable and lasting damage to the course.
Raes Creek at the Augusta national is a river! pic.twitter.com/yCdfUoXB0N
— Spahlorgahdee (@Spahlorgahdee) September 27, 2024
The club’s chairman, Fred Ridley, issued a statement but added that the club’s main focus was on the community that had been devastated by the hurricane:
“Our Augusta community has suffered catastrophic and historic impact from Hurricane Helene. We currently are assessing the effects at Augusta National Golf Club.
— The Masters (@TheMasters) September 28, 2024
In the meantime, our focus and efforts are foremost with our staff, neighbors and business owners in Augusta. Our…
Understandably, the state of Augusta National is currently one of the lowest priorities of the club chairmen and the community. US media are currently estimating at least 52 fatalities and millions of people without power in the southeastern US.
Our thoughts are with the victims of the hurricane and their families.
If Scottie Scheffler’s sporting career continues like this, Ted Scott will become a kind of second Steve Williams. The New Zealander was in the pocket of the GOAT in Tiger Woods’ heyday and became the wealthiest sportsman in his home country thanks to the ten per cent share of the boss’s prize money.
Ted Scott and his unique way of celebrating the Masters win
This year, Ted Scott has already shared in Scheffler’s successes at the Arnold Palmer Invitational and the Players Championship as well as the other top placings, and his Masters triumph adds another 360,000 dollars in prize money commission. This year, the man in his early fifties has certainly earned more money from the world number one’s pocket than, for example, Rory McIlroy on the fairways.
A win for family near and far. #themasters pic.twitter.com/YEcGCbNXhh
— The Masters (@TheMasters) April 14, 2024
In total, the former mini tour pro is likely to have raked in just under six million dollars since Scheffler persuaded him to give up early retirement in 2021, which Scott decided to do after splitting with Bubba Watson. Interestingly, he won the Masters Tournament with the left-hander in 2012 and 2014, and exactly ten years later he repeated the feat with Scottie Scheffler. And because he secured the flag of 18 again yesterday, including the flagstick as a trophy, Ted Scott can celebrate the victory again like he did two years ago:
Ted Scott is living his best life post-Masters victory pic.twitter.com/rod6egdkst
— Tim Reilly (@LifeOfTimReilly) April 13, 2022
Only one week from now the Masters Tournament will hold a new champion. Well, that is of course if the reigning champion Jon Rahm doesn’t defend his title. As per usual, no major is being played without having various discussions about possible outcomes, title contenders or dark horses. When talking title contenders, none of these discussions can be had without including Rory McIlroy. We’re having a look at what the odds for a McIlroy win look like and why even though ranked second in the Official World Golf Ranking, most may not hold him as one of the favorites to win at Augusta.
Essentially, McIlroy is currently not in bad form and has repeatedly won tournaments such as the Hero Dubai Desert Classic or the Genesis Scottish Open. However, it still seems wrong to include the world number two in the tight circle of favorites on par with players like Scottie Scheffler and Jon Rahm. The reason for this is obvious: McIlroy has not won a major tournament in the past ten years.
The trophy cabinet desperately awaits another major title
His last victory in a major dates back to 2014 when he won the PGA Championship. It marks his fourth major title after winning the US Open in 2011, the PGA Championship in 2012 and the Open Championship in 2014. Since then, he has been unable to fulfill his dream of a Grand Slam, winning all four major tournaments. Only the Masters Tournament is missing for him to achieve this. However, considering his lack of success at majors in recent years, there are hardly any arguments to suggest why he should fulfill his Grand Slam dream at the upcoming Masters. But let’s stop the pessimism and have a look at the bright side for a moment.
Why there is hope for optimism at the Masters Tournament 2024
With all that being said, it’s not like Rory McIlroy doesn’t perform in his major appearances. In the last five years, the North Irish player placed inside the top 10 at major tournaments twelve times. He just didn’t get lucky enough to win one of them. However his past results at the Masters Tournament were very inconsistent. Last year didn’t go as planned, as he missed the cut, just like in 2021. In between he had a very close shot at the title with his runner-up finish in 2022. In 2020 he finished tied for fifth place.
His current form also suggests that a good finish at the Masters this year isn’t beyond imagination. This year started off great, with a tied runner-up finish at the Dubai Invitational and a victory in the following week. McIlroy also placed inside the top-20 at the Players Championship and secured a third place the Valero Texas Open, looking to build some confidence for the upcoming week.