Augusta House: First Impressions

Like the majority of journalists covering the Masters this week, PGATOUR.COM's group of writers -- Melanie Hauser (MH), Mike McAllister (MM), Helen Ross (HR) and Brian Wacker (BW), along with the Houston Chronicle's Steve Campbell (SC) -- have rented a house instead of staying in hotel rooms. So what did they talk about Friday night? Here's a peek inside Augusta House.

MM: It's always special the first time you attend the Masters. Helen, when was your first time here?

HR: It was 1981. I just remember being in awe.

SC: Mine was 1995 when Crenshaw won. I remember walking in and seeing those guys with the sticks and the spike at the end, picking up cigarette butts like their lives depended on it. That's how clean they want to keep it here.

MM: Helen, how many women were in the press tent in those early years?

HR: I think it was three. Me, Melanie and there was a Spanish woman.

MH: It was very bizarre. Helen and I got to be quick friends. That Tuesday or maybe it was Wednesday, it was rainy and cold, and because we weren't allowed in the locker room or the men's grill, we had to huddle outside under the overhang when talking to players. I remember telling Helen in my irate voice: "We've gotta do something about that."

MM: And did you?

HR: My former boss, Irwin Smallwood, got up in a golf writer's meeting and said he thought it was wrong that our female members didn't have the same access as the men.

MH: Marino Paracenzo, who was the president, took it up with Hord Hardin, who was the chairman of the Augusta National. The next year, we proudly walked through the door with the brass plate that said "Gentlemen Only."

HR: Henri, one of the waiters, told me I was the first to eat in the men's grill.

MH: Arthur Williams, the Maitre 'd, told me it was me.

MM: So, who was it?

MH: It doesn't matter. It was just something that had to be changed. I was talking to Louise Suggs, who's here this week. Maybe she should be the first female member at Augusta National. She knew Bobby Jones. They were good friends.

HR: That would be fitting. I interviewed her before the Memorial Tournament a couple of years ago.
She knew Bobby Jones. She used to go watch him hit balls at East Lake.

MM: Steve, was there one place you wanted to see first when you got here in '95?

SC: Oh, Amen Corner. You know what blew my mind -- there's a place for the media, inside the ropes just to the right of the No. 12 tee. You can view the 11th green, the whole 12th hole and the 13th tee.

MM: How long did it take before you ate your first pimento cheese sandwich?

SC: Never. Never had one. Those things look disgusting. I hate pimento cheese.

HR: I don't think I've ever had an egg salad sandwich. That's another one of the big things to eat.

MM: One of the most shocking things to me is the prices. The food's so cheap. It's weird to think that attending the Masters is affordable.

SC: They leave a lot of money on the table. They know exactly the way they want this thing to be run and they won't be influenced by the money. That's why I respect them so much.

MM: Brian, this is your first Masters. What are your initial impressions?

BW: The first thing is how small and intimate the whole place is. The second is the elevation changes.

SC: No. 10 is the most shocking hole on the course. You have no idea watching on TV how spectacular that hole is.

BW: The third thing is just how friendly the people are. People call you by your first name, always have a smile for you. Growing up in the northeast, I'm not used to people being friendly. Well, they are, but in a different way, like elbowing you in the stomach.

HR: One of my favorite things to do is stand under the tree near the clubhouse. I could stand there for hours, just listening to the people talk, listening to the players. It's pretty cool.