History of The Masters

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The History of the Masters can be traced back to 1931, when Bobby Jones and Clifford Roberts had a vision of a golf course that would host an annual event.  The pair found a perfect stretch of 365-acre land, set in the backwoods of Augusta, Georgia.  It was an ideal location for a golf course with a warm Spring climate.  Teaming with Allister MacKenzie, the premiere golf architect of that generation, the three went to work to engineer the vision.  The course was completed in 1933, but MacKenzie died before his masterpiece hosted the first tournament in 1934.

Roberts had the initial inclination to call the annual tournament "The Masters," but Jones did not like the term.  He found it to be too audacious.  The "Augusta National Invitation Tournament" began in 1934, though renamed "The Masters" in 1939 after Jones agreed to the name.  Horton Smith was the first ever winner of the tournament, in 1934.  Today, the Masters is widely considered one of the great sport spectacles in the world as evidenced by The Masters History.

The tournament drew public attention in 1935 when Gene Sarazen made a double-eagle on the Par-five fifteenth hole, that was famously dubbed the "shot heard around the world."  Sarazen went on to win the tournament, becoming the second ever winner.  Jones played in the event 12 times, but his best finish was 13th, in the inaugural tournament in 1934.

Changes To Augusta National Until 2002,  little changes were made to the design of the golf course.  However, members of Augusta National were becoming increasingly irritated at the low scoring each year. They wanted substantial change to combat the developments in golf club technology. Therefore, the course underwent a makeover.  Seven of the eighteen holes were changed, that included added length, bunkers, trees and new tee boxes.  Length was added again in 2006.  The difficult conditions have proven to hold up as the average scores have increased in relation to par. Zach Johnson claimed the green jacket in 2007 with a score of one under-par, a drastic change from a decade earlier, in which Tiger Woods won by finishing 18 under-par.

Interesting Facts About The Masters 1. The Player who has the lowest score of the day during a tournament round receives a crystal vase honoring the achievement 2. A Champions dinner is hosted the Tuesday during the week of the Masters in which the defending Champion hosts the past champions of the Masters. 3. The term "Amen Corner" references the 11th, 12th and 13th holes.  Back in 1958, a writer for Sport Illustrated, Herbert Warren Wind observed that this section of the golf course was most critical.  He took the phrase from a jazz song entitled "Shouting at Amen Corner." 4. No players has won both the par three tournament and the Masters Tournament in the same year. 5. Each hole has a different name attached to it.  For example, the 12th hole is named "Golden Bell." 6. Jack Nicklaus has the most victories in the History of the Masters, with six. 7. It is an official money event on the PGA Tour, European Tour and the Japan Tour.

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