The Story Of President Reagan, A Crazed Gunman And A Hostage Stand-Off At Augusta National

When you think of Augusta National, you picture a place where everything runs smoothly and not a single blade of grass is out of place. That's almost always the case, especially at The Masters, but in October 1983, the club played host to a rather unsavoury incident.

A gunman taking hostages at Augusta is one of the lesser publicised aspects of the club’s history, but it happened when President Ronald Reagan came to stay and play almost 23 years ago.

Ronald Reagan had been invited to the club by one of its members, George Schultz, who was Secretary of State in Reagan’s government. Also invited was Donald Regan, the White House chief of staff. The four-ball was completed by Senator Nicholas Brady, later to join Reagan’s cabinet as Secretary of the Treasury.

Reagan was an infrequent golfer, especially after he became President. But he was said to possess a decent swing, although his best rounds were in the low 90s.

While Reagan was out on the course, a local resident, 45-year old Charles Harris, rammed open an unmanned locked entrance gate from Washington Road in his Dodge truck and drove up to the clubhouse.

Here he took a chauffeur hostage at gunpoint and marched him into the pro shop, demanding to speak to the President, and in all took seven hostages at Augusta National.

Among those in the pro shop was an assistant to Reagan who asked to be allowed to leave to arrange this. The others in the shop were taken hostage. The chauffeur was allowed to leave.

President Reagan was playing Augusta's 16th hole when he heard of Harris' request and he decided to telephone the pro shop.

"I understand you want to talk to me"

Inside the pro shop the telephone rang, and Harris answered. It was the wife of a members asking for her clubs to be got ready. “Ma'am, we ain't playing no f -- ing golf here today," Harris replied and put down the phone.

The phone rang again. It was answered by one of the hostages, a Reagan aide. He had been supposed to be playing golf with national security adviser Bud McFarlane, but McFarlane had been called back to the Eisenhower Cabin as the US was planning to invade Grenada.

This time it was the President on an early mobile phone from the 16th green. It was a poor line and Harris could not hear Reagan say: ''This is the President of the United States. This is Ronald Reagan. I understand you want to talk to me.''

In his fury, Harris pulled the phone out of the wall.

No-one at that time knew why Harris wanted to speak to the President, but later it emerged that Harris had been undergoing a difficult period, during which his wife had left him, his father had died and he had lost his job. He wanted to talk to the president about this.

Reagan and Schultz were driven from the club in their golfing attire while the hostage stand off continued. But after two hours, by which time all the hostages had either escaped on been released, Harris was apprehended.

Reagan returned to the club and stayed a night in the cabin named after President Eisenhower, as planned, and played golf the next day.

Harris was charged with kidnapping an Augusta National Golf Club chauffeur, false imprisonment of a golf club pro shop employee and a special assistant to the president and criminal damage to property in the second degree for damaging the gate.

He pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 10 years in prison and a further 10 years of probation. He served five years in prison.