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What would you do if you found a burly county agent in your bedroom, demanding that you cut your grass? Erica Masters of Martinez in Columbia County,near Augusta,captured such an encounter recently on her home surveillance camera when code compliance officer Jimmy Vowell entered her bedroom to demand she come out to sign a summons. "He let himself in and actually came through the house and into my bedroom and yelled at me to wake me up to let me know that I needed to come back outside and sign the violation notice," Masters told WJBF-TV News Channel 6 station...

(CNN) – Rick Santorum went to the tee Thursday evening, weighing in on a golf controversy that earlier attracted the attention of the White House and other GOP presidential hopefuls.

WASHINGTON (AP)—A White House spokesman said Thursday that President Barack Obama believes women should be admitted as members to the all-male Augusta National, home of the Masters golf tournament. White House press secretary Jay Carney told reporters that Obama’s “personal opinion is that women should be admitted” to the golf club. Carney said it was “up to the club to decide” but Obama told him he personally thinks women should be welcome. “We’re kind of long past the time when women should be excluded from anything,” Carney said. Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney, Obama’s likely challenger in the fall, said...

Look at the senior women meeting with Obama in this White House photo at a dinner they called to discuss their invisibility. Look at their faces and body language. They are pissed off. Coverage in the Washington Post...focused attention on the frustration of Obama’s female advisers. But the problem has been obvious almost since Obama took office. And while the explanations so far have blamed members of the mostly-departed boys club–Robert Gibbs, Rahm Emanuel–Obama himself is responsible for a work atmosphere that marginalizes and ignores women. "...there were only 58 women in the 142 highest senior staff positions at the...

ATHENS, Ga. -- A woman who lived with her uncle in Clarke County didn't realize he was dead for at least two days even though she was unable to wake him and saw fluids seeping from his body, authorities said. Athens-Clarke police ruled out any possibility of foul play but are conducting a thorough investigation of the 59-year-old man's death to ease relatives' concerns, police said. The niece had moved into her uncle's home only a week before he died and relatives worried that the mentally ill teen might have killed him, according to police. "There is nothing criminal that...

AUGUSTA, Ga. – Charl Schwartzel has won the Masters by two strokes over Adam Scott and Jason Day after a wild final day at Augusta National. The 26-year-old South African closed with four straight birdies, making a 20-footer at the final hole to wrap up a 6-under 66. He finished 14-under 274, enough to deny Australia its first green jacket.

AUGUSTA, Ga. -- Georgia authorities are investigating the discovery of six loaded shotguns aimed at a food plot that were rigged to be fired through a network of Web-controlled cameras. The Augusta Chronicle reported the guns were discovered last fall on Georgia Power Company right of way in rural south Georgia. The set up was discovered by a utility contractor and it was reported to the U.S. Office of Homeland Security. The newspaper reported that a bulletin circulated by the Office of Homeland Security said it appeared that the rig was only intended for illegal hunting in an area known...

A Marine reservist collecting Toys for Tots donations at Augusta's Best Buy was stabbed in the back this afternoon while helping subdue a shoplifting suspect. -- snip -- Attaway, of the 500 block of College Street in Waynesboro, has been charged with armed robbery, aggravated assault and possession of a knife in commission of a crime.

CNN has an interesting roundtable on the case of Jennifer Keeton, who has sued Augusta State University to keep from getting expelled for not repudiating her statements about homosexuality. Keeton expressed her biblical perspective on the subject in and out of class while working toward a degree in counseling, and the school mandated a “remediation plan” that appears to have required her to renounce her Christian doctrine in order to gain a diploma from the school. The school has responded that a bias against homosexuality would disqualify Keeton from certification, a position that would put most Christians in Keeton’s position.Does...

An airplane that towed banners taunting Tiger Woods about his sex scandal during the Masters has been ordered to stop until it undergoes minor repairs. Kathleen Bergen, an Atlanta-based spokeswoman for the Federal Aviation Administration, said Friday that FAA flight safety inspectors issued the order after meeting with the plane's pilot. The single-engine Cessna made two flights near Augusta National as Woods played Thursday in the first round of the Masters, close enough that the banners could be read from the course.

First-Timer Sim Ready to Wave Australian FlagMonday, March 8, 2010By Bob Gillespie Growing up, Michael Sim was a typical Australian child of the 1980s and ’90s, especially when it came to golf. He idolized Greg Norman – as a junior, he wore a broad-brimmed white hat similar to his hero’s – and the first week of each April, he would rise at 3 a.m. local time to see the Masters on television.He was not, of course, the only one. Practically his entire adopted homeland – Sim was born in Aberdeen, Scotland, but his family moved to Australia when Michael was 5...

Enough with Obama's stealth taxing! Enough with bigger government! Enough with elite politicians who were voted by the people but behave like royalty! Enough with our Constitution being treated like toilet paper! Enough of the Media being in bed with Socialist! If you live in Maine and have had enough show up at a Maine Tax Day Tea Party. Time: April 15, 2009 from 2pm to 7pm Where: Capital Park City/Town: Augusta Time:2pm to 7pm If you want a rally closer to your home just organize one. If you wait until someone else does it for you , you could...

One of the great sports traditions in America begins on Thursday, when The Masters gets underway at the Augusta National Golf Club in Augusta, Georgia. No tournament has the tradition and sense of awe that The Masters inspires. The course has a lot to do with that. Here is a video look at some of the key holes on the back nine that always figure prominently in the outcome of The Masters. As the week goes on, we'll post some video of a few of the great moments in Masters history . . . . . . . (Watch Videos)

Welcome to the (I guess) official thread to the 73rd playing of the Masters Golf Tournament from the Augusta National Golf Club. Now the game that we love and it's season is now officially, let's see who will be walking the 18th fairway ready to slip the coveted green jacket on late Sunday afternoon.We all know who's in the field. While I'm posting this thread early, we can discuss and predict who's going to win.

AUGUSTA, Maine — Where state government goes, technology is not far behind: Maine is joining other states in passing rules to restrict text messages from electronic devices, hoping to stop lobbyists from calling signals from the legislative sidelines.

AUGUSTA, Maine — Lawmakers overwhelmingly approved an emergency measure Tuesday to bring the state budget out of the red for the fiscal year that ends June 30. The $166 million supplemental budget was enacted by votes of 120-22 in the House and 31-3 in the Senate. “I want to congratulate the Legislature and the committees for their work on this,” Gov. John Baldacci said in an interview. “This was a difficult budget and now we have to work on the biennial budget, which will also be difficult.”

AUGUSTA, Ga -- It's a new radio station that's doing a lot of explicit talking, illegally. Now the community is talking about 99.9 FM. For the second day in a row, 99.9's owner said he would meet with News 12 to explain himself and for the second day in a row he backed out, and that has some in the community are crying foul. It's renegade radio right in the middle of your FM dial, and on 99.9 is where you will find DJ Shortdog, "Yeah it's official, we're underground. We don't have a license. Slap me on the wrist."...

Legislative leaders, voting along party lines on Thursday, rejected proposed legislation that would require parental consent for schools to give children 14 and under prescription drugs, including birth control pills. Republican Sen. Douglas Smith of Dover-Foxcroft, who sponsored the measure, denounced Democratic leaders for not allowing the issue to be considered this session. "This is a fundamental right we are talking about here," Smith said. "This is a parental right to control the prescription drugs their children are taking. The Democratic majority today felt that the state should have the right to intercede in that, and that is an unfortunate...

Maine’s license residency issue took a sharp political turn Thursday as House Republicans expressed shock over a report that calls for tighter rules but stops short of saying illegal aliens should be prevented from getting driver’s licenses. "At a time when our country is at war with Islamic extremists, it is absurd to give licenses to illegal aliens," said House Minority Leader Josh Tardy of Newport. "These people could be anybody. But with an official license, they can board flights, enter government buildings, collect welfare and probably even vote." Secretary of State Matthew Dunlap dismissed the GOP criticism. But he...

A former Augusta church choir director and teacher's aide admitted Wednesday what he has denied for years - that he is a child molester. For taking responsibility for what he did, Carlton Johnson, 46, was sentenced to eight years in prison followed by seven years' probation by Superior Court Judge J. Carlisle Overstreet. Johnson was back in court because the Georgia Court of Appeals reversed his conviction in January. The court ruled that Johnson was unfairly convicted in early 2003 because Judge Overstreet forced his defense attorney to try the case after the attorney told the judge he wasn't prepared....