Golf Tours - PGA Tour - The Masters
The Masters is one of four major
championships in men's golf, and the first to take place each year.
Unlike the other major championships, the Masters is held every year at
the same location: Augusta National Golf Club, which is a private golf
club in Augusta, Georgia, USA. The Masters was started by Bobby Jones,
who designed Augusta National in conjunction with legendary course
architect Alister MacKenzie.
In addition to a cash award, the winner of the tournament is presented
with a distinctive green jacket, awarded since 1949, highly coveted
among professional golfers. The green sport coat is actually the
official coat worn by members of Augusta National while on the club
grounds; each Masters winner becomes an honorary member of the club.
In line with the other majors, winning The Masters gives a golfer
several privileges which make his career much more secure, if he is not
already one of the elite of the sport. Masters champions are
automatically invited to play in the other three majors (the US Open,
British Open and the PGA Championship) for the next five years, and earn
a lifetime invitation to The Masters. They also receive membership on
the PGA TOUR for the following five seasons and invitations to THE
PLAYERS Championship for five years.
Controversy
Augusta National had a long history of racial segregation, and it was
not until 1975 that Lee Elder became the first African-American to play
in the Masters. Then, in 1997, headlines were made around the world when
part-African-American Tiger Woods won the Masters. More recently, the
club was targeted by Martha Burk, who organized a protest at the 2003
tournament to pressure the club to welcome female members; the protest
was essentially ignored by the club and did not appear to have any
widespread public support.
Perhaps the most controversial aspect of the tournament is its
television coverage in the United States, which the club awards on
successive one-year contracts to CBS and USA Network. As a result, the
CBS Sports crew which produces the event works under the constant
possibility, if not an actual threat, that coverage unfavourable to
Augusta National could jeopardize future contracts. While the club, CBS
and USA have all repeatedly denied that any explicit edict exists, a
number of sports media commentators have pointed to, among other things:
* The disappearance of Jack Whittaker from the CBS commentary team after
referring to a crowd as a "mob" one year (he would return a few years
later);
* Gary McCord's similar disappearance from the CBS crew after saying in
1995 that the Augusta greens were so slick, they seemed to be
"bikini-waxed". McCord continues to be employed by CBS for nearly all of
its other golf events, but has never returned to Augusta;
* Use of terms such as "patrons" instead of "fans", or "second cut" in
place of "rough";
* Failure to acknowledge the above-noted and much-publicized protest led
by Martha Burk;
* A general failure to mention any negative aspects of Augusta National
during the telecasts, and indeed a pattern of perhaps overly reverential
comments towards the club.
From:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Masters_Tournament
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