The Masters
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KNOW THAT DOES.
The Masters is one of the most unusual events in sports.
It's all about tradition, and it's defined by a set of odd rules
and customs that just don't exist outside of Augusta National.
It's great.
We compiled the oddest traditions that make the Masters and
Augusta one of a kind.
Food prices are ridiculously low
Tipping is banned
Cell phones are prohibited at all times and cameras are not
permitted during the tournament.
It's one of the only places in the U.S. where there are long lines for payphones.
There's a huge fence around the course to keep out animals. There
has been one deer sighting in the last 65 years.
Only four minutes of commercials per hour are allowed during the
broadcast and no blimps are allowed
TV commentators are not allowed to refer to fans as "fans" or
"spectators" They are to be called "patrons," and the rough
is to be referred to as the "second cut."
The Masters banned CBS broadcaster Gary McCord in 1995 for
saying, "They don't cut the greens here at Augusta, they use
bikini wax."
Players had to use local caddies provided by Augusta until 1983.
Players are allowed to use their own caddies now, but they have to
wear the Augusta uniform — green hat, white jumpsuit.
Like many golf courses, there is good fishing at Augusta
National, but the players don't like to talk about it
because it is forbidden.
When Augusta was brought up, he described their responses as
"squeamish" and they only admitted to hearing there were some
good spots.
A former caddie was willing to tell Burke that the best spots
are the creek in front of the 12th hole ("full of bream";
seen above) and the pond at the 16th hole ("brimming with
bass").
Fans
. oops, we mean patrons ... patrons aren't allowed to wear their hats backwards.
Patrons can bring collapsible chairs to sit on, but those chairs are
not allowed to have armrests.
Running is not allowed, unless you are a player.
Grounds crew members used to wear hard hats.
There is an odd myth that the grounds crew at Augusta packs the
azalea plants with ice if spring comes early. The idea is that this
will keep the plants from flowering too soon before the tournament.
There is a house located in the middle of the Augusta National
parking lot because the owners refuse to sell it. The family has
reportedly turned down "millions."
You can't apply to become a member at Augusta.
It's nearly impossible to become a member at Augusta. You have to be nominated
by a current Augusta member, and new initiations generally aren't accepted unless someone quits or dies. The total membership hovers around 300.
Augusta is closed in the summer to keep the course in pristine shape.
Even the press conference podium is immaculate.
Players are given brand new Mercedes for use during the week.
Golf cart drivers who are hired to drive the players around
Augusta National also pick up the golfers at the airport in
the Mercedes they will be using. The cars also have a number
in the back window so that employees can always identify the
players by which car they are in.
You can go to jail for selling tickets.
Twenty-four people were arrested outside Augusta in 2012 for
trying to scalp tickets.
The course is insane about who it lets into the tournament and
it's illegal to sell tickets within 2,700 feet of the gates.
You can only ask for autographs in one part of the course.
Fans always line the ropes at big tournaments in hopes of getting
a signature. But this is tougher to do at Augusta.
You can only try and solicit an autograph on the Washington
Road side of the clubhouse, near the practice facilities.
The bunkers at Augusta are filled with mining waste.
You know those pristine white bunkers?
They're actually composed of waste product from the mining of aluminum,
according to Golf.com
Basically, there's this company that mines feldspar (rocks) for aluminum. This
process produces waste in the form of really bright, pure quartz — that's whatAugusta uses.
The old media center was enormous.
Augusta opened a new media center this year and it is gorgeous.
The course used cows as lawnmowers in the 1940s.
Augusta is its own universe with a tenuous connection to the outside
world (see: all the ridiculous anecdotes in this slideshow).
But WWII affected Augusta just like it did the rest of the country. During
the war, Augusta didn't have the manpower to maintain the course,
so they set 200 cattle loose on the grounds in hopes that they would "trim"
the grass by eating it.
Wow.
. Come and get it. Heehee. 
we have six in the pool... come Sunday evening the winner can PM each of us his mailing address and we will send it along... Have fun watching and good luck to all...