Insider tips for the Masters

Pilots stopping by Augusta on their way home from the Sun 'n Fun International Fly-In and Expo or flying into the area for the Masters Tournament will be welcomed at Daniel Field’s Augusta Aviation fixed-base operation, about five miles south of the golf course.

The FBO’s observation deck is a good place to relax in a rocking chair and do some plane spotting as professional golfers, business people, and others flock to the area in singles, twins, and business jets. In 2018, I saw Professional Golfers' Association competitor and 2013 Masters Champion Adam Scott’s Gulfstream on the ramp.

The FAA is in on the game with the Azala Four departure that acknowledges Masters Champion Jack Nicklaus with a navigation aid named NKLAS. Golf aficionados will spot the Amen Corner reference at AMENN before overflying AZALA on an outbound heading of 352 degrees.

During the tournament a temporary control tower pops up on the ramp. Make sure to check landing reservations and notams for restrictions, and steer clear of Bush Field, the commercial aviation airfield six miles south.

If you arrive in the days before the Masters competitive rounds April 11 to 14, your chances of scoring tickets to see a keen contest will likely improve. The new-for-2019 Augusta National Women’s Amateur invitational brings the world’s top female amateur golfers to the area for 54 holes of golf—including an official practice day at Augusta National on April 5 and the championship round April 6. Fred Ridley, Chairman of Augusta National Golf Club and the Masters Tournament, announced the initiative in 2018 as a “new, exciting, and rewarding pathway” to the sport. 

Another option with a similar competitive spirit is the Drive, Chip, and Putt championship for young golfers who play at Augusta National the Sunday before the Masters. The youth event for boys and girls ages 7 to 15 began in 2013 and has produced repeat winners. Trust me, the excitement of watching a 12-year-old leap into the air with a fist pump after sinking a long putt doesn’t get old.

Masters badges (tickets) are passed on from generation to generation, so if you don’t yet have plans for the professional rounds, then your chances of attending in person are minimal. However, all is not lost. Online registration for April 8 to 10 practice sessions and the April 10 Par 3 Contest is closed, but ticket hawkers line Washington Road outside the main gate. Arrive early and look for the signs.

Once you're inside the gates, either stake out a spot near the hillside greens of hole No. 9 or hole No. 18 because they afford wonderful sightlines and expansive views of adjacent hole No. 1, hole No. 2, and hole No. 10—or make a beeline for the second nine’s Amen Corner—the apex of hole No. 11, hole No. 12, and hole No. 13.

The Amen Corner grandstands or the pine straw and grass vantage points are perfect for sweeping views of multiple tees, greens, and fairways. Spectators can soak up a lot of golf from this area, and it’s a great place to socialize, get a drink, or enjoy a bite of food. Make sure to try a pimento cheese sandwich, an egg salad sandwich, or my favorite—a chicken filet sandwich.

Another great vantage point is the azalea-covered hillside near co-located hole No. 6 and hole No. 16. It’s a pleasant place to loll in the thick grass with spectacular views of several fairways and greens. On practice days, contestants skip their golf balls across the pond for unofficial bragging rights at the par-3 signature 16th hole.

If you’re into history, the seventeenth green is known for Jack Nicklaus’s downhill double-breaking birdie putt in 1986 that sent a deafening roar across the golf course and propelled the then-46-year-old “Golden Bear” to a record-setting sixth Masters green jacket victory amid tears of joy that he shared with his son and caddie, Jackie.

On the 18th hole in 1997, a watery-eyed young Tiger Woods embraced his father Earl after holing out to establish his name among golfing’s elite. The then-21-year-old’s victory marked his first major championship win—and his first of four Masters’ titles—a number that he shares with golfing great and pilot Arnold Palmer.

At the end of each round (and several times during the day), competitors, patrons, and other guests gather around an oak tree past the greens at hole No. 9 and hole No. 18 for impromptu interviews. The gnarly shade tree is a good place to sharpen your people-watching skills and to catch a few words of the professional competitors while they are swarmed by the media.

On the other side of the clubhouse, a flagpole amid a sea of yellow flowers in the shape of the United States attracts many visitors to the Founders Circle at the end of Magnolia Lane. The stately square-columned mansion topped by a crow’s nest guest room for amateur competitors provides a key backdrop for photos during practice days.

Golf historians recall that amateur champion Bobby Jones helped establish the Masters in 1934 at the site of the old Fruitland Nurseries. The rich soil once served as an indigo plantation, and each golf hole is named after the natural beauty of trees and shrubs that adorn hills and valleys. The tournament begins with the par-4, 445-yard Tea Olive and finishes on the par-4, 465-yard Holly.

U.S. presidents including Ronald Reagan, Richard Nixon, and Dwight Eisenhower have played the golf course, but special recognition was given to Eisenhower. It was on the narrow uphill hole No. 17 fairway that “Ike” pulled his drives into a loblolly pine that became known as the Eisenhower Tree. He hit it so often that Eisenhower lobbied golf club officials to have it removed, but they resisted. The tree continued to vex golfers until a 2014 ice storm took its toll on the pine.

The turf of the Masters and Augusta National Golf Club has brought professional athletes and U.S. presidents to their knees, but it has also fueled keen competition, contemplation, and personal triumph.

Take a stroll down Magnolia Lane and experience it for yourself.