Masters holds to tradition as it changes with times

AUGUSTA, Georgia (AFP) –

Tiger Woods of the US during a practice round at the 77th Masters golf tournament at Augusta National Golf Club on April 10, 2013 in Augusta, Georgia.

As Augusta National clings tightly to golfing traditions, its rich and powerful membership has tried to stay with the times in order to reflect changes beyond the confines of the private club.

A club founded 80 years ago that once mandated black caddies and did not invite a black golfer to the Masters until 1975 became the site of the first major won by a black player when Tiger Woods captured the 1997 Masters title.

Women’s activists were so upset at the men-only status of Augusta National that they staged a protest across the street from the club during the 2003 event, when the Masters telecasts dropped commercials over fears of action against advertisers.

But oh how the times have changed.

Augusta National welcomed its first black member in 1990 and its first women members, financier Darla Moore and former US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, were unveiled last August.

“I hope the experience for Condi and Darla as members of our club has been every bit as rewarding for them over the last eight months as it has been for their fellow members,” Augusta National chairman Billy Payne said Wednesday.

“It’s just awesome. We have been very excited about it. These two ladies have been very special and it has just been delightful.”

Today Augusta National offers special invitations to unheralded players such as Thailand’s Thaworn Wiratchant and helped create the Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship, whose winner earns a berth in the Masters.

That’s where 14-year-old Chinese schoolby Guan Tianlang won last year to qualify for this year’s Masters and the chance to play against his idol, 14-time major champion Woods, on a showcase course.

“Wishing to see Guan in the #Augustamaster,” tweeted tennis star Rafael Nadal. “This guy promises a lot and He’s a great career ahead!”

Guan is the living realization of Payne’s dreams for the event.

“We started with the simple objective of creating heroes whose success would inspire others to become involved in the game,” Payne said Wednesday.

“No doubt millions of kids across Asia will be following (Guan) this week and by doing so begin their introduction to the great game of golf.”

Just as Elder inspired Woods and 18-time major winner Jack Nicklaus gave him a target to chase, Woods has done the same to Guan and a new generation on a course that was lengthened to cope with equipment and ball technology advances.

But Augusta National’s biggest evolution has nothing to do with the course. Even such legends as Woods and Nicklaus said it was time for Augusta National to admit women as members.

When asked what took Augusta National so long, Payne backpedals behind the club’s private membership policies.

“That question gets into the process that we took and the time that we took and other to say that it went about the same process and same amount of time as any other member, I wouldn’t have any comment,” he said.

Payne, who became chairman in 2006, said other men-only clubs should make the choice with which they felt comfortable when it came to women and refused to put any higher message on women joining Augusta National.

“People can take what they want,” Payne said. “We admitted them because they are two great members of the club and we’re all looking forward to increasing our relationships with these wonderful ladies.”

When pondering the issue, it’s worth noting that Augusta National took 50 years before responding to pleas from its own business partners before offering discreet corporate hospitality areas on the tournament grounds this year.

However Augusta National still has no corporate advertising or giant corporate hospitality tents flanking holes on the grounds as the other three major events feature.

“It was in response to decades of requests by companies with whom we have been affiliated, sometimes for 50 years, for an upgraded level of hospitality,” Payne said.

“They were going elsewhere to get it. They wanted us to be able to produce it for them because they hoped they would thereby receive the quality that Augusta National would put into it.

“It’s only two days old but I think it’s going to be quite a success.”

Augusta National’s membership of rich and powerful business leaders has juggled the difficult combination of tradition and the need to adapt.

“You take all of that power and all of these resources and talent and we ought to be able to be pretty good,” Payne said.

“I really don’t characterize much of what we’ve done as change. What we’ve done is do what we’re supposed to do and that is to be a beacon in the world of golf and to do our best to influence others to want to be a part of it.”