Social Golf Concentrate US Masters (subEagle)

Lords of Augusta	Augusta is an authoritarian place. The club’s approach has always been the same: The Masters is our tournament. If you do no like the way we put it on, you are welcome not to participate. And, if you participate, you will be asked to behave in a certain way. If you cannot do that, you will be asked (told) to leave.
A message from Bobby Jones	The attitude of the men who run the club and tournament is perhaps best explained by the message at the back of every pairing sheet issued during the Masters. Pairing sheets provide information on group tee-off time and who plays in a group. Message from: Robert Tyre Jones (1902-1971) President in Perpetuity, Augusta National Golf Club … In golf, customs of etiquette and decorum are just as important as rules governing play. It is appropriate for spectators to applaud successful strokes in proportion to difficulty, but excessive demonstration by a player or his partisans are not proper because of the possible effect upon competitors. Most distressing to those who love the game of golf is the applauding or cheering of misplays or misfortunes of a player. Such occurrences have been rare at the Masters but we must eliminate them entirely if our patrons are to continue to merit their reputation as the most knowledgeable and considerate in the world. (written in April 1967) Customs of etiquette and decorum are not limited to patrons (called fans at other tournaments), they also apply to players, wives of players, and CBS announcers. Clifford Roberts banned CBS man Jack Whitaker from its telecasts because he referred to the patrons around the 18^th green as “a mob”. Jack Stephens did the same thing to Gary McCord in 1994 for making references to “body bags” behind the 17^th green and for saying the greens were so fast they appeared to have been “bikini-waxed”.
Ticket	The price of a ticket for the four days of the tournament had been fixed at $100 for years. Scalpers used to sell them for $8,000 each in the late 90’s. But if you are in the ticket list, you pay $100 for four days. The US Masters is the only sports event where there are more patrons during the practice days (Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday) than the actual tournaments itself. 45,000 patrons for each practice days as against 35,000 for each tournament days. Each ticket has a number that can be traced back to the owner. If someone misbehaves, the owner is removed from the ticket list. There is no longer any waiting list to get on the ticket list. It is not known how anyone can get on the list. What is known is no one wants to be removed from it.
Television	The club retains almost complete control of the Masters telecasts. CBS had been the first network to televise the tournament and 56 years later it was still the only network that had televised it. CBS and Augusta always had a one-year contract, which kept the network on a very short leash. One mistake too many and the Lords Of Augusta will be on the phone to ABC or NBC. Whereas most majors receive over $30m television rights fee, CBS pays Augusta about $5m per year. That is enough for the Lords. Do the US Masters need the television rights fee? Of course it does, like Bill Gates needs a car loan. Two years ago when a protest against the club's refusal to admit female members was organised. Women's rights activists prepared to launch an attack on the tournament's sponsors and there was talk of a widespread product boycott. The response of the Lords of Augusta? It cancelled the sponsorships for 2008 and 2009 to protect the companies and covered the cost itself. There are still no female members at Augusta and the controversy has quietened down. CBS and partner network (ESPN for 2010) are allowed ten hours of live Masters coverage (not sure what the arrangement is for 2010). Re-starting this year, each hour will contain exactly four minutes of commercial. Two minutes for Travelers Insurance and two minutes for Cadillac - period. International broadcasters insert their commercials at their discretion. TV commercials will normally be worth $6m to the Lords. International TV rights deal with BBC and Tokyo Broadcasting will be worth an additional $10m. For this year (2010), Thursday and Friday will be televised by ESPN. There will also be TV broadcast and live streaming in 3D.
Streaming	In 2006, a web stream called "Amen Corner Live" began providing coverage of all players passing through holes 11, 12 and 13 through all four rounds. This was the first full tournament multi-hole webcast from a major championship. In 2007, CBS added "Masters Extra," an hour's extra full-field bonus coverage daily on the internet, preceding the television broadcasts. In 2008, CBS added full coverage of holes 15 and 16 live on the web.
Do’s and Do Not's of Master Telecast	CBS Do's and Do Not's during US Masters telecast: · Do Not refer to the gallery or to fans. Do refer to patrons. · Do Not refer to the front nine or the back nine. Do refer to the first nine and the second nine · Do Not under any circumstances hint, imply, or infer that these great players are competing for prize money. Do bring up as often as possible how important the principles of amateurism are to the Masters as exemplified Bob Jones · Do Not ever refer to Bob Jones as Jones or Cliff Roberts as Roberts. Do call them by their full names or Mr. Jones and Mr. Roberts. · Do Not bring up the blue dye in Rae’s Creek or the notion that anything artificial has ever been done to the aesthetics of Augusta National. · Do Not refer to any of the buildings names for President Eisenhower or Bob Jones or anyone else as cottages. Do call them cabins. The penalty for violating these rules? A very big chance of a McCord/Whitaker scholarship. When Sean McDonough (young up-and-coming broadcaster with impeccable pedigree, a rising star ...) slipped a couple of times on the ‘08 and had referred to the “gallery” around the green, he made up for it big time. At one point during the telecast later in the day, Sean used the word patrons six times in three sentences. It was believed to be a new Masters record for, um, patronizing the Lords Of Augusta.
Champions Dinner	The Champions dinner is held each year on the Tuesday evening preceding Thursday's first round, and is only open to past champions (officially known as the “Masters Club”) and certain board members of the Augusta National Golf Club, usually just the current chairman. The dinner was first held in 1952, hosted by then defending champion Ben Hogan, to honor the past champions of the tournament. The defending champion, as host, selects the menu for the dinner. Although it is tradition for all invitees to eat what the host serves, anyone may order from the kitchen. When Tiger served cheeseburger, fries and milkshake on his first Champion’s dinner, there were very few side orders. Which is more than what can be said when Sandy Lyle served haggis in 1989. Angel (current champion) is said to be serving traditional Argentine food, lots of meat and little vegetables.