Augusta National Golf Club

Lore & Background

Augusta National (originally, during planning stages, Augusta-National) was founded in 1932 by Bobby Jones and Clifford Roberts on the 365-acre site of a former nursery and antebellum plantation called Fruitland (later Fruitlands). Jones sought to create a world-class winter golf course in his native state of Georgia. During the first decade of the club's existence, membership was low and finances were short due to the Great Depression and the relatively remote location of Augusta. Other names considered for the club were American-International Golf Club, Georgia-National Golf Club (the early leading choice), the International Golf Club of Augusta, and Southern National Golf Club. Construction of the golf course, designed by Alister MacKenzie, began in February 1932 and was finished quickly. MacKenzie was assisted by Marion Hollins. The club also hired Olmsted Brothers to design a new, future clubhouse and a planned subdivision. An official opening took place in January 1933. The Masters was first held in 1934. The Georgia Railroad Bank & Trust Company forced a foreclosure of the club and re-incorporation as Augusta National, Inc. in 1935. During World War II, Augusta National closed on October 1, 1942. To assist the war effort, cattle and turkeys were raised on the grounds. In 1944, German prisoners of war held at Camp Gordon were forced to restore the grounds. After the war, membership grew. In 1948, Dwight D. Eisenhower and his wife Mamie were personally invited to Augusta by Roberts; Eisenhower became a member. A new par-3 course designed by George Cobb and Roberts was built in 1958, and the annual Par 3 Contest was first held in 1960. In 1976, Augusta National, Inc. won a trademark lawsuit against Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Co. over the use of the term 'Masters'.

In Their Own Story

The April air hangs thick and warm over the 12th fairway, sweet with magnolia and the faint green smell of freshly cut Bermuda. A player drops to one knee, reads the break, and the entire world goes silent. You can hear the flagstick rattle softly in its socket on the green, the distant clink of a caddie's bag, the whisper of wind through the live oaks. He strikes. The ball floats over Rae Creek, that dark ribbon of water catching the late-afternoon sun, and lands with a soft thud on the apron. The crowd exhales. A single, low murmur rolls through the stands like a wave. The player nods, almost to himself, and walks back toward the fairway. His caddie, in the regulation blue trousers and white shirt, adjusts the strap of his bag and follows. No one claps. No one needs to. In this place, the silence after a great shot is louder than any applause ever was.

Reader's Guide

The course is a private club and not open to the public. The Masters Tournament is held annually in April. The course is closed from late May through mid-October.

Did You Know?

• Augusta National was originally planned on the site of a former nursery and antebellum plantation called Fruitland.
• The club was forced into foreclosure and re-incorporated as Augusta National, Inc. in 1935.
• During World War II, German prisoners of war helped restore the grounds in 1944.
• President Dwight D. Eisenhower became a member in 1948 and visited Augusta National 29 times during his presidency.