14 Things You Didn't Know About The Masters

How well do you know The Masters? Get to know the annual Augusta National showpiece a little better in this video and article...

14 Things You Didn't Know About The Masters

1. Hole yardages

All of the hole yardages at on the Augusta National scorecard either end in 0 or 5. The famous par-3 12th measures 155 yards, the 13th is 510 yards, the 18th is 465 yards and so on…

2. The tournament's name

Did you know that The Masters started out as the Augusta National Invitational Tournament? It only got its current name in 1939, five years after that first Invitational event.

3. Before Augusta National GC

The course used to be a plant nursery. The club purchased the land from a hotel chain that bought the old plant nursery but ran out of money.

4. The inaugural invitational

The inaugural Invitational tournament was held in 1934, with Augusta city council stumping up $10,000. Horton Smith won $1,500, more than both the US Open and PGA Championship first prizes at the time.

5. Asia-Pacific Amateur

The winner of the Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship earns an invite to play in the Masters. Hideki Matsuyama won the inaugural Asia-Pacific Amateur (originally known as the Asian Amateur Championship) in 2010 and went on to win the low amateur honours at the 2011 Masters before - of course - winning the Green Jacket in 2021.

6. Phone policy

The fans, or patrons as they are known at the Masters, aren’t allowed to bring their phones onto the course. So when you watch the big moment at this year’s tournament, you’ll notice the fans watching without holding their phones out in front of them. It makes a nice change!

7. Fred Ridley

The current Augusta National chairman Fred Ridley won the 1975 US Amateur Championship. He also represented the USA at the Walker Cup and played in three Masters Tournaments as an amateur - he is the only Augusta National chairman to have also played in the tournament.

8. TV coverage

The first and second round Masters TV coverage only began in 1982. Previously, armchair fans had no way of watching the first two days’ play. And, not only that, 18-hole coverage on Sunday only started in 2002 and the Par 3 Contest only started being televised in 2008.

9. Caddies

Players were only given the option of using their own caddies during the Masters in 1983. Before that they were allocated one of the club’s own caddies to use during tournament week. Famously, all Augusta National caddies wear white boiler suits and green caps.

10. The nines

The front nine actually used to be the back nine. The nines were reversed in 1935, a year after the inaugural Augusta National Invitation Tournament. We think it’s fair to say that was a good idea.

11. Hardest and easiest holes

The hardest hole in the history of The Masters is the par-4 10th, which averages of 4.3. The easiest is the par-5 13, with an average of 4.77

12. Small field

The Masters is the hardest men’s Major to qualify for as it has by far the smallest field of the four Majors. In 2018 it had just 87 players - the lowest in history. The 2021 Open Championship had a field of 156 competitors as a comparison.

13. The trophy

The Masters Trophy, a model of the Augusta National Clubhouse, was introduced in 1961. It was made in England and features over 900 separate pieces of silver.

14. The 'curse'

The now famous Wednesday Par 3 Contest started in 1960 and since then, nobody has won that and the Green Jacket in the same week. The par 3 course measures 1,060 yards with holes ranging from 70 to 140 yards.