The eve of any major championship is challenging for players, fans and the media. With the constant flow of content being put out into the ether, even world-class media gasbags are about tapped out with thought or original conversation by Wednesday. How many times can we extrapolate whether Rory is in the right headspace? Players have installed their game plans and any player searching for a swing thought on the eve of the Masters will be on a Delta regional jet connecting in Atlanta or heading to Hilton Head on Saturday morning in a courtesy car.
Wednesday morning for me started with breakfast with Taylor Zarzour. Taylor has followed me at three different stops in my career. When I left local radio in Charlotte he arrived at the station, WFNZ, that I had departed and quickly became a valuable voice in a market that is still experiencing rapid growth. When I left SiriusXM to head to Golf Channel in 2011 he took a position with the network in varied roles. He also currently handles the play-by-play job for the Carolina Panthers television preseason package, a position I occupied from 2006 to 2008. Taylor has become the visionary for the PGA Tour radio network, transforming the channel’s line-up into a collection of voices with personality and relationships with every top player in the game. It’s nice when you have a meal with a good friend who can nerd out about golf like I can and it was a super geeky conversation about distance reduction, the champions dinner and broadcasting ideas for round one coverage on SiriusXM for Thursday. When you eat in the dining room in the Press building, you order and within five minutes your food is delivered piping hot. How can a facility that operates one week out of the year with part-time help be so courteous and efficient? I don’t know, but the organization could teach virtually every other business in the service sector how to do what they do better. Egg whites and bacon for me. Rock solid.
Fred Ridley’s annual state of the Masters commenced at 11 AM sharp and it was standing room only. The weight of the Augusta National voice in the industry of golf is unmatched and Ridley holds the position to not only speak for the club, but to lead it into whatever is next, and their reach in the game is boundless. I asked the second question of Mr. Ridley after he finished his opening remarks and despite him touching on the recent announcement by the governing bodies on their proposed modified local rule on the golf ball, I felt it was necessary to get clarity on their position. I simply asked if they supported the proposal and he stated that they did, which came as no surprise. He spoke for 45 minutes and was asked about Greg Norman not being invited this year as a past major champion, the future exemptions of LIV players, the changes to hole 13, his own experience playing in the Masters and the Champions dinner.
The SiriusXM team had our final production meeting and just a reminder to those in the broadcast field, if you are standing next to Mike Tirico in a production meeting it means your career has not bottomed out just yet. Mike will be the lead play-by-play person for the radio broadcast because why wouldn’t he? He’s the most versatile and committed broadcaster in the industry and with some of the most significant assignments in all of sports television he’s willing and enthusiastic about doing radio. He also is a team guy, in every way.
After lunch with Eamon Lynch of Golfweek and Golf Channel, I had a cup of soup and a Caesar salad with grilled chicken and was anxious to get on the course for the first time. I always make my first trip around Augusta starting on 10 tee and the view is the most majestic on the golf course. Cascading loblolly pines are the backdrop behind the tenth green and the distinctive Mackenzie bunker that is recessed from the front of the putting green by 60 yards are the most profound images of the hole. The Mackenzie bunker lacks the uniformity and homogenous appearance of most of the other bunkers on the golf course and even though it is rarely if ever in play, it is one of the defining design features on the course from its original creation. You descend from the top of the golf course to the bottom in two holes. Walking downhill 350 feet to the 11th green and the stage that is Amen Corner. I grew up sledding on the hills of Arcola Country Club in northern New Jersey and I gaze at the hills and slopes at Augusta National and marvel at the potential for the greatest sledding experience in another lifetime. The hills on 10 and 11, the hill as you turn the corner on the second fairway, the hill on the 8th going back to the tee and the side slope on hole number five. The 12th hole is golf’s greatest stage. I mean that in the sense that the audience can’t actually approach the stage. Once the players hit their tee shots, they head to the solitude that exists across the Hogan bridge. Looking back at the new tee on 13 from afar, I can tell you that I love it. It’s elevated and it looks natural, and I’ve always been a fan of true chutes on back tees and the new tee is a cylinder in appearance. A few other quick observations on seeing the course again. The climb from the 14th tee to the apex of the fairway is underrated, the severity of the drop off in front of the third green is dramatic and the original range which sits between 9 and 18 is the perfect wide corridor for fans to make their way out onto the golf course.
A few final quick hitters:
- Steve Elkington still has great style. Five pocket pants, stylish shoes and a killer belt. Elk looked good.
- Gary Woodland is a good athlete. His wife might be a better athlete having seen her climb a rock wall years ago in the Bahamas and seeing their little kids has me betting on their athletic futures.
- The Oak Tree adjacent to the clubhouse is the greatest outdoor meeting area in golf industry history.
- Best dressed media member. Eamon Lynch in a light grey suit and a dark solid tie accenting by carmel-colored leather boots. Not bad for a writer.
- My pick is Scottie Scheffler. Let’s start this thing.