Everything You Need to Know About Attending The Masters
“A tradition unlike any other”, The Masters is truly a once in a lifetime experience. Every April, the best golfers in the world tee it up at Augusta National Golf Club for a 4-day tournament that is a combination of southern traditions and athletic talent. The food (and food prices) are iconic, the course is iconic, and the green jacket as a trophy at the end is iconic. But what makes this tournament so desirable is that it is almost impossible to get a ticket. However, if you are one of the lucky few who do happen to get a ticket to The Masters or to the Augusta Nation Women’s Amateur tournament the week before, here are some tips that will help you navigate the golf tournament.
Book Your Hotel or Airbnb Early
Augusta is a small town, with not a lot of space. However, most families actually ended up leaving for the week and use that time to rent out their homes as AirBnBs for Augusta spectators. Ticket notifications for those who enter the lottery usually come out in May, so you need to have your accommodations booked by September to ensure that you have a place to stay.
Enter the Lottery for Both Tournaments
If you want to double your chances of getting Augusta National tickets through the lottery, make sure you apply for both The Masters and the Women’s Amateur tournament, which happens the week before. Each tournament has its own merchandise that can only be purchased during the week of that tournament, but both include the iconic Masters logo.
Where to Enter and Where to Buy Masters Merchandise
First, you want to get there early. Traffic will be crazy, but if you can, enter the course on the South side. The traffic was more manageable and it was super easy getting in and out at the end of the day. When you enter, you will enter through the Augusta National gates (get your camera ready) and you will come to the first merchandise tent. SKIP THIS ONE. This building was so packed it was actually closed for a few hours before the tournament even started because it was at capacity and the line was HOURS long. Instead, go to the merchandise tent that is by the green of hole number 5. We walked straight there upon entering and only had to wait about 40 minutes to get in. Another benefit to getting your merchandise early is that if there is room, you can store your merchandise so you don’t have to carry it around all day. For a full recap on everything we bought (it was alot), check out this video and this one for part 2.
What to Bring and What Not to Bring
No phones allowed any days…while it may seem crazy to be without your phone, it was actually nice to be able to enjoy the golf and the course without taking videos of everything. However, you are able to bring a camera for still photography only on practice round days (which was how I was able to grab all of these great shots). For a full list of what you can and cannot bring, click here.
What to Wear to The Masters
My best advice on what to wear if you are attending The Masters is to pack something that has layers. It is going to be cold in the morning, may potentially rain, but could also be hot in the afternoon. We actually had all 3 of these weather conditions so the rain jacket I packed was perfect for the day. This video is an actual shot of the full outfit for the day including the activewear dress I wore. But whatever you decide to wear, make sure you add shoes you can walk in!
Overall, if you get the chance to attend The Masters it will be an experience you will never forget. I recommend sitting in the stands on hole 16 and watching some of the water shots on practice round days, standing on the 18th tee box to see just how narrow that tee shot is, and grabbing all of the merchandise you can get!
