I’ve been at The Masters all week, and I can certifiably say it’s the best sporting event I’ve ever been to.
Here’s what stands out:
Here’s what stands out:
Scalping tickets is strictly prohibited. But there's a thriving underground market. A one-day badge resells for anywhere between $1,500 - $4,000. I asked a scalper how to identify a fake. Every badge had an RFID tag, which allows every ticket to be tracked or voided at any time.
The Masters isn't just a golf tournament. It's also a food festival, with cheap and delicious options. The classics are the egg salad sandwich, the pimento cheese sandwich, Georgia peach ice cream, and the Crow's Nest beer. The concession stands have long lines but move quickly.
The Masters gives television rights to CBS and ESPN for free, in exchange for total control over the broadcast. This is why there are so few commercials on TV, the announcers pump endless praise into their microphones, and it's so easy to watch the tournament on your phone.
The Masters does ~$1 million in gift shop revenue every hour, which adds up to ~70 million per week. People go crazy with gifts because you can only buy Masters-branded merchandise at the tournament. During peak times, it's so crowded that you can barely move.
To encourage proper behavior, this message is on every badge.
High trust culture: In a world of rising crime and stranger danger, Masters fans are kind and respectful. For example, you can reserve a seat for the day by putting down a lawn chair, and nobody will touch it. Beer flows, but I didn't see one obnoxiously drunk person all week.
While other tournaments tolerate (or encourage) obscene behavior, The Masters doesn't mess around with rules. On Friday, a guy next to me shouted: "Get in the hole!!!" Within seconds, a plain-clothed gallery guard walked up to him and threatened to kick him out of the tournament.
You don’t hear many critiques of the Masters because the tournament has such strict speech rules. A journalist who says something out of line could be forever banned from the tournament. Legend says that if a fan gets tossed, their photo is taken and they're forever banned too.
Since The Masters is the only major championship played at the same course every year, every fan knows the golf course. The course is a hall of memories. Walking it, you feel like you’re stepping into your television or living inside a painting.
The operations are extremely efficient. Attendants shepherd people through the bathrooms and clean the stalls between every use. There's also an on-course "post office" where you can ship everything you’ve bought. FedEx and UPS could learn something about how fast the line moves.
Never in my life have I seen more private jets than when I landed at Augusta Airport. It felt like a festival for Gulfstreams and Leerjets because Masters week is basically Coachella week for some of the world's wealthiest and best-connected people.
“Pristine” was the word that came to mind most as I walked the grounds. Augusta National is what you'd end up with if you had nearly unlimited money to make a golf course perfect. The conditions affect play too. The pros sink more putts inside of 10 feet than any other course.
My big critique of Augusta National is that the tee shots aren't very interesting. It's an approach-shot course. The bowled, topsy-turvy greens add drama by increasing the number of birdies *and* bogeys. The slope-heavy greens mess with your eye and reduce the margin for error.
The juxtaposition between the golf course and the surrounding neighborhood is bizarre. The course is an immaculate Valhalla, but the road next door is filled with strip malls and chain restaurants like Hooters and Olive Garden.
This photo was taken right outside the course.
This photo was taken right outside the course.
The Masters is one of the most technologically progressive organizations in the world, but also one of the most technologically skeptical ones. Above ground, the tournament feels like it’s run by Luddites. No phones. No radios. No digital screens inside the gates.
Below ground, the Masters is a technological marvel. A series of underground cables connect the on-course cameras with the press building. The greens have a grid of motors and pressurized valves that pump oxygen to the roots of the grass. A SubAir system dries out the course too.
As a fan, it’s almost impossible to track what's happening on the golf course. What happens away from you, on other parts of the golf course, is almost a complete and total mystery. Ironically, attending the tournament means you'll be confused about what's going on.
The Masters is a lesson in how to build a timeless brand. Maintain high standards. Obsess over the details. Aesthetically, keep things simple and repeat what works over and over again. Seek improvement, but resist the allure of too much innovation. It can kill a classic brand.
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