Masters behavior
Francesco Molinari learned on the eve of his first appearance at the Masters this major was different from the others. He was at Augusta National in 2006, not to play but as the caddie for older brother Edoardo, the U.S. Amateur champion. Their father caddied in the Par 3 Tournament, and Molinari was trying to keep up outside the ropes.
Dashing from the green to the next tee, he soon was confronted by a club member.
“After like six steps, one of the green jackets came in and said, ‘No running,’” Molinari said. “That week, you’re always conscious of what you’re doing.”
Augusta National has rules, just like most private clubs, and its members expect them to be followed.
Unlike other clubs, however, Augusta doesn’t just host a major.
It runs the major.
The heritage created by co-founders Bobby Jones and Clifford Roberts and built up over eight decades has created an aura that permeates everything and everybody. It is the ultimate invitational — even four-time champion Tiger Woods get an invitation in the mail.
Fans are on their best behavior. For the most part, so are the players.
No phones are allowed, which Ian Poulter once discovered the hard way. He tweeted a picture from his practice round one year.
“I didn’t get told off,” he said. “I got asked politely not to be taking pictures. So you don’t. There’s a way they say things that mean, ‘You shouldn’t do that,’ which is different from how other people tell you. They have their way. It’s cool.”
Molinari says he once saw a player snap a club in half going down the 11th fairway, though he concedes it’s rare.
Bryson DeChambeau had a meltdown on the practice green in Mexico City earlier this year when he pounded his putter into turf, and then did his best to repair the damage. Those scenes aren’t likely at Augusta National.
Rory McIlroy was playing the British Open as an amateur in 2007 when he saw Henrik Stenson smash a tee marker out of frustration. Golf makes everyone crazy, as McIlroy has experienced himself. He once hurled a 3-iron into a lake at Doral and broke a club at Merion during the U.S. Open.
“I would think twice about it there,” he said of the Masters. “You get in trouble. You want to come back.”
Does anyone really think Augusta National would not invite a player back if he were eligible? No one really knows.
“There was a little incident in the Middle East,” McIlroy said with a smile, referring to Sergio Garcia being disqualified for damaging five greens early in the third round of the Saudi International. “If that would have happened at Augusta, I don’t think he would have been invited back.”
No one wants to find out.
“I was under the assumption it was possible,” Paul Azinger said.
There is a respect for the tradition, sure, but there is an atmosphere at Augusta that starts with how it expects the fans to behave. No running. No screaming. No phones for talking, texting, tweeting. It’s rare to see fans in blue jeans, even though that’s not part of any dress code.