Here’s what happened.
The Masters Tournament is one of four events in the modern Grand Slam of Golf. It began as the Augusta National Invitational Golf Tournament, on a course designed by golfing legend and Atlanta native Robert Tyre “Bobby” Jones, Jr. The first Masters was held on March 22, 1934.
Here’s why it matters.
Bobby Jones won the original Grand Slam in 1930. He retired from professional competition in 1931, when he was only 28 years old. But he wanted to play privately on a course that would continue to challenge his skills. So he and a co-investor named Clifford Roberts selected land near Augusta that had been an indigo plantation. The course that Alister MacKenzie designed was so popular that it spawned the tournament and an organization to host it, Augusta National Golf Club.
The modern Grand Slam now includes The Masters, U.S. Open, British Open, and PGA Championship. Five men have achieved a Career Grand Slam: Ben Hogan, Jack Nicklaus, Gary Player, Gene Sarazen, and Eldrick Tont “Tiger” Woods. But Jones remains the only man to have achieved it in the same calendar year.
Golf has a billion-dollar impact on Georgia’s economy. The 2013 edition of The Masters will take place on April 11-13.
Here’s an interesting fact!
Membership in Augusta National Golf Club is granted strictly by invitation. The club’s segregation against women ended in 2012. Its first two female members were Condoleeza Rice, former U.S. Secretary of State; and Darla Moore, a financier and philanthropist.
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