Q: The Masters is coming up soon. When did the tournament begin? Has it always been played at Augusta National?
A: We know it as the Masters, the home of azaleas and dogwoods — and anguish and disappointment for many golfers — but when the prestigious event started, it was called the Augusta National Invitation Tournament.
Bobby Jones, who was Atlanta-born and bred, and considered the world’s best golfer in the 1920s, invited golfers to play in the inaugural tournament at his new course in Augusta, called the Augusta National Golf Club.
The first round was held on March 22, 1934.
Jones had been retired for four years, but participated in the first tournament, despite what Masters.com calls a reluctance to play “out of a concern that his game was not in top form.”
His name and fame was needed to attract attention – and money — to the tournament and Augusta National Golf Club, which had opened in January 1933.
Cold temperatures greeted the 72 golfers who played in the first tournament, but Horton Smith was undeterred.
He was tied for the lead after the first round and was alone at the top for the next three to win the first Masters at 4-under par.
His earnings: $1,500.
By comparison, Jordan Spieth earned $1.8 million for winning last year’s Masters.
Smith proved his feat wasn’t a fluke when he won again in 1936.
Jones was right about his game.
He played well, but finished with a four-day total of 294, 10 strokes behind Smith. His 13th-place finish was “his best performance in the 12 Masters in which he competed,” Masters.com states.
The name of the Augusta National Invitation Tournament officially was changed to the Masters in 1939, but famed sports writer Grantland Rice called it the “masters’ open” in his story after Smith’s victory on March 25, 1934.
Others also had referred to it as the Masters before the name was changed.
This year’s tournament will be held from April 7-10.
Funtown memories wanted
I’ve received a question about Funtown, an amusement park that was on Stewart Avenue in the early 1960s.
If you have any memories or accurate information about Funtown, let me know for possible use in a future Actual Factual Georgia.
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