Gushing about Augusta National is a rite of spring. Rightly. And it\u2019s absolutely worthwhile seeing the place in person, ideally during one of the practice rounds, a more \u201cnatural\u201d setting — in terms of observing both the golf course architecture and the players \u2013 than during tournament play. The holes themselves, familiar from TV, are preternaturally vivid, and of course the contours look nothing like they do in the 2D, 3D, or HDTV versions.<\/p>\n
Even so, my preference is to catch the proceedings on the tube. This is true to some extent of most tournaments, but none more so than the Masters (the only real contender being The Ryder Cup). I suppose that contemplating all the subtleties in club selection and ball-striking while, say, spending the entire final round behind the 12th<\/sup> tee would be diverting. But the attraction of the back nine on Sunday is the rapid-fire succession of ups and downs. It demands a multiple-camera perspective.<\/p>\n Although every effort is made to record golf competitions, thereby to fast-forward through commercial interruptions, it\u2019s often tough to evade the results before replay. The appeal of real-time viewing is fully realized in the Masters\u2019 advertising-averse programming, and even the cloying, clinking theme music serves a useful purpose, i.e., as the cattle prod-like reminder to get up and do something productive. Like stretch. Or get a beer.<\/p>\n For a golfer, there\u2019s nothing about the Masters not to like, including the benchmarks represented by this year\u2019s installment: the 50th<\/sup> anniversary of Gary Player\u2019s victory, the 25th<\/sup> of Jack Nicklaus\u2019s, still among the half-dozen most exciting home stretches in golf.<\/p>\n At a time when almost everything about the game is filtered through the prism of its effect on participation, though, it\u2019s interesting to ponder what outsiders think of Augusta National\u2019s splendor.<\/p>\n # # #<\/p>\n TheAPosition writers love the PGA tour<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"