The Masters

The Masters. Augusta National. Beautiful. Quiet. Peaceful. Media. Good, simple food. Logo merchandise. Crowds. Green. Manicured. Skipping golf balls. Old players, rookie players. Good times. The Masters.

Yesterday at 7:00am, we headed out into the frigid air to the Masters golf tournament practice rounds. In a city where the high averages 80 degrees this time of year, we, to put it into one word, froze. It was 39 degrees. Bundled up like little Arctic snow warriors, we trudged forward to the golf course. And, guess what? At 8:00am, what golfer wants to play golf in the windy, cold air? None. So, we did what everyone else did to stay warm, we shopped.

Around 9:00am, we had a welcomed visitor, the sun. And the sun brought friends, golfers. Ryan, who has been to the Masters numerous times, took the boys and I over to one of his favorite spots to watch as the golfers attempted to skip golf balls across a pond and onto the green. During our walk to this fav spot, a man jumped out of nowhere with a cameraman and a microphone. The boys eyes lit up. They were interviewed. Colin's classic remark was "I can tell you one thing, my lawn at home isn't THIS green!" And wouldn't you know, the boys now think they are famous. They honestly were up at 6:00am this morning watching the news again to see their featured segment.

(These pics above are Phil Mickelson attempting to skip the ball across the pond....you can see the ball as well as the water splashing after it has skipped in the water. Pretty cool.)

From Ryan's fav spot, we headed over to Amen Corner, the spot I wanted most to see. Again, Colin had a remark...."hey, that is that bridge that you see in pictures everywhere."

Our day was coming to an end when I mentioned the fact that we still had not seen Tiger Woods. Surely he had to be there somewhere, right?! Ryan suggested we go to the putting green and watch the golfers practice the putting shots. Good idea. So, up we went. There was a HUGE crowd. Jokingly I said I thought maybe Tiger was putting. Ryan said probably so. And wouldn't you know, behind the mobs of people and flashing lights, there was Tiger putting away. Now, we knew he was there but just when I thought there was no way to possibly see him, a very kind security man walked over, took the boys' hands and led them into the crowd of people. The boys had a special, front row seat to watch Tiger. Meanwhile, Ryan somehow managed to secure a spot in the crowd close enough to get great pix of Tiger. Me, being the mom, stayed close to the spot that the boys had entered into....I was a little nervous they would come out and we would get separated. As I stood there, I managed to see Tiger's golf bag, his coach, and his caddy. People were pushing and snapping pix and trying to get closer. It was almost maddening. Then, at a glance, I saw Tiger myself....that famous profile, that smile. Cool.

I had gotten word that Tiger was going to leave the putting green and go over to another spot with sand traps to practice. So, we quickly headed that way to secure a spot when the boys came out. Kind of cool....Tiger did come, the boys will tell of how they brushed up against him and how he just "didn't look happy to be there." Tiger struck up a conversation with Gary Player. Supposedly, this is Gary Player's last year at the Masters. I had to snap a few shots.

And then, it became obvious that word had gotten around to the Tiger fans as to his whereabouts. People were lining up to get a seat in the stands. Our friend, the sun, appeared to be gone for the day and our enemy, the wind, was growing stronger. We called it a day. What a fun experience for all of us!

And where, you ask, was MK? Back at home with G-Mom and G-Dad who came to spend the day with her. They stayed warm inside cooking for her babies, reading books and coloring.