It is one of the biggest traditions in sports - it’s The Masters golf tournament - which will conclude with the final two rounds this weekend at the Augusta National Golf Club in Augusta, GA.
During the countless promos for coverage of The Masters on CBS, I was struck by the phrase that describes this long-standing tradition. The phrase, “A Tradition Unlike Any Other,” is trademarked by the Augusta National Golf Club and appears on all official Masters merchandise.
Why does The Masters deserve the phrase, “A Tradition Unlike Any Other”? Since I am not a golfer, I was curious why The Masters owned this distinction. It is not the oldest sporting tradition, and it’s not even the oldest golf tournament.
Here are the years some of America’s greatest sports traditions began:
U.S. Open (tennis) 1881
U.S. Open (golf) 1895
Stanley Cup (hockey) 1893
Rose Bowl (football) 1902
World Series (baseball) 1903
The Masters (golf) 1934
NBA Finals (basketball) 1947
Super Bowl (football) 1967
It is obviously not the oldest championship in sports, so what makes The Masters so special?
CBS sports announcer, Jim Nantz, is credited with calling The Masters “A Tradition Unlike Any Other.” Nantz has been calling The Masters for 35 years. His first Masters was in 1986 when he was only 26-years-old; and his voice, often in a whisper, is synonmous with the manicured fairways and greens, the dark ponds and creeks, the blooming azaleas, and the green jacket awarded to the winner.
It is the collective imagery and tradition that elevates The Masters to such a special event. The tournament is a four-round, 72-hole, stroke-play golf tournament that takes place in the first week of April. The winner of The Masters receives a green sports coat and last year’s winner, Dustin Johnson, won $2.7 million.
Jack Nicklaus has won the tournament more than any other golfer with a record six wins, and Tiger Woods is second with five wins.
Here are a few of the interesting traditions at The Masters:
No cell phones are allowed at any time, and The Masters may be the only place left with lines at pay phones.
No cameras are allowed.
A fence surrounds the course keeping animals out, and no one has ever spotted a squirrel during play. There have been a few deer sightings over the years.
With not noticeable birds in the trees - it is rumored that CBS pipes in artificial bird sounds, which are obvious during the broadcasts.
There are only 4 minutes of commercials each hour during the broadcast, and broadcasters are never allowed to refer to the fans as “fans” or “spectators” - they must always be referred to as “patrons.”
There is allegedly good fishing in the ponds and creeks, and the pond at the 16th hole is said to be full of bass. (and undoubtedly many golf balls)
The grass may be painted in areas to present a blemish-free appearance.
Suspicion about the beauty of the ponds led to a journalist testing one of the ponds and discovered that it was full of food dye.
No tipping is allowed.
The food is very inexpensive.
One of the edible traditions at The Masters is a pimento cheese sandwich - which is a mix of sliced pimentos, cheddar cheese, Monterey Jack cheese, cream cheese, onions, salt, pepper, cayenne pepper, and Mayonnaise between two pieces of white bread. The pimento sandwich sells for $1.50!
The image of The Masters as “A Tradition Unlike Any Other” is built on the collective visuals and the tradition of the tournament being held every year at the Augusta National Golf Club. But the tournament has not been without controversy, especially concerning race.
The first African-American player allowed to play at The Masters was Lee Elder in 1975, and that was 11 years after the Civil Rights Act of 1964 was passed. And it was not until 1991 that the Augusta Golf Club allowed black members.
In 1994, CBS golf broadcaster Gary McCord described the greens at Augusta as “slick as a bikini wax.” That led to his immediate suspension from covering The Masters, but did return later with a new approach.
The Masters is such an event that even people who are not golfers, like me, will take time to watch. The visual beauty; and the strolling of the players and the patrons along the green fairways and meticulous greens with the calm whispers of the announcers as the players concentrate on their shots or puts makes The Masters a relaxing television moment in a world now dominated by aggressive sports and trash talking.
The Masters is being broadcast on CBS.
