Posted on 04/08/2026 12:40:47 PM PDT by Jacquerie
Augusta National Golf Club is probably the most prestigious golf club in the country.
There are millions of people all over the world who dream of just being able to step on the grounds.
There is so much history and information surrounding Augusta National that it can be hard to fully understand the impact that this place has had on the game of golf.
August National Golf Course is owned by Augusta National, Inc.
The Augusta National, Inc. is a for-profit institution that was created in Georgia back in 1935 when the course was first built.
The two original owners of Augusta National were Bobby Jones and Clifford Roberts.
These were the masterminds behind the building of the golf course, and they were able to create something that completely changed golf history forever.
Most private golf clubs are owned by the members, but Augusta National is not like that.
This is not a traditional equity golf club.
To get into Augusta, you will have to be invited, and it is not easy to get an invitation.
Once you are invited, you still need to pay a good amount of money for the initiation fee and the annual dues.
Most of this information about what the club costs and what members are paying from year to year is not released to the public.
The last time it was released, it could be estimated that the initiation fee was around $200,000, and the yearly dues were somewhere around $30,000.
When you get invited to join Augusta National, chances are you will have no trouble affording these high prices.
Most of the members of this prestigious place are some of the wealthiest people in the country.
One of the unique things about the club is that they don’t even keep a list of potential members or a waiting list for people.
Most of the time, the idea of a private club is to fill it to its maximum capacity so that it can properly function and pay for the operation.
This is not the case at Augusta, and it is extremely difficult to get in.
The property of the Augusta National Golf course has become quite valuable through the years.
It is currently estimated with a tax assessed value of $85,000,000.
If you are new to the world of golf, you may not have a full understanding of what it is that sets Augusta National apart.
The Masters Tournament is held every year at Augusta National, and it is one of the four major championships on the PGA Tour.
Unlike other championships that will change courses from one year to the next, the Masters Tournament is always played at Augusta.
This has helped to make sure that people are falling in love with the course from one year to the next and really learning each and every hole.
People understand the layout and design of the Masters more than any other course on the PGA Tour circuit.
A few years after the course opened, they hosted the first ever Masters Championships.
If you are a professional golfer, your chances of getting invited to be a member at Augusta are rather slim.
In history, there have only been two professional golfers who have been invited to be members at Augusta.
Those two golfers are Jack Nicklaus and Arnold Palmer.
Only one president has ever been a member at Augusta.
This president is Dwight David Eisenhower.
Eisenhower was a very serious golfer who enjoyed the game perhaps just as much as the average golf fan.
Eisenhower played golf any chance he got, and he was quite good at it as well.
If you have not read about it, there is a lot of history about Eisenhower and golf.
He truly made the sport even more of an average person’s game and showed people all over the country that golf is both fun and accessible.
Eisenhower certainly took advantage of his membership at Augusta and tried to play there often.
After his membership, Augusta never invited another president to join the club.
Woods out due to personal issues and Mickelson is not playing due to a family health issue.
Yes.
And the green jacket belongs to the club. You get to wear it only at Augusta.
I love the tradition.
The only way for the general public to get tickets these days is to apply via a lottery on the masters website. There are lifetime badges, but those aren't available anymore for new patrons.
I recall flying to Casper, WY early one Sunday morning in April, 1986 to work on a two week contract...The plane was heading out of BZN and we had BAD snow.
Our flight took off at 6:30 AM (after 15 minutes of de-icing) and then our airport was closed down...On to Casper!
Well it was not to be... upon decent into CPR we were waived off (twice) and rerouted to DEN.
I had breakfast at the airport and watched the snow fall, but it was much less snow than was falling in BZN or CPR.
Later I eventually had a burger and a beer and began watching the final round of the Masters golf tournament — I was literally alone in the bar...
Jack Nicklaus was in 9th place with 10 holes to play and then came THE SURGE!
It was a miracle! I was ‘whooping’ and ‘hollering’ as The Golden Bear came from behind to win his 6th Masters and 18th Major tournament.
By the time the tournament was over the bar was packed and if the beer was any stronger than 3.2% I would not have made my next flight to CPR which, coincidentally, started boarding just after the presentation of the Green Jacket!
It’s the 40th anniversary this year and I’ll be watching: 1986
A documentary on CBS about the win.
Been to Colorado many times since then but have never had a better time!
Agusta GCC is a special, hollowed place.
No matter how poorly you played - and that's a very difficult course - that was a violation of golf etiquette.
Announcer Gary MCCrod was bounced for a couple on-air innocuous jokes e..g. (the greens are so fast they've been bikini waxed...)
Hey Wang, I think this place is restricted so don't tell them you're Jewish.
Bethpage Black is often ranked as the No. 1 most challenging golf course in the country that is open to the public.
I should have mentioned that Mr. McDonald shot 68
Wow!
“Some people take their golf very seriously.”
It’s a very serious game. Imagine, if you will, making an important money-making shot when suddenly someone sneezes. If that distracts you the tiniest bit, it could cost you $300,000. Or $3 mil.
I really admire he nerves of ice the big players exhibit. I’d go screaming down the fairway about something the pros just laugh at.
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