The reason The Augusta National looks bad in the summer is because it is closed during the summer -even to members. It is open from mid-September to May. (I may be off some, but that's approximately the times). They drive bulldozers across the course reshaping greens and fairway mounds.
I was fortunate to be asked to play The Augusta National many years ago by a member. I walked the course along with him. My Dad and his friend rode a cart. We all had caddies who carried our bags. It was mid February, very cold and drizzly. I think we may have been the only ones on the course that day.
I don't know what the green fees are as the member who had invited us took care of it. We offered to pay but he told us not to worry about it and he wouldn't tell us how much, if anything, it cost him to have us as his guests.
I did pay the caddie fee which at the time was $30. I also gave him like a $20 tip and I paid for my Dad's caddy.
My caddie's name was Smittie. At the time I played, the National was still requiring that all golfers used Augusta National Caddies during the Masters. Every year, my caddie caddied for Bruce Devlin during the tournament.
I played terrible, but managed 3 pars - on the 2nd, 15th, and 16th holes. Shot a 101 overall.
My biggest regret was that on the 15th, after a very good drive from the member tees, I was looking down the hill at the green, I think maybe around 200 yds to the green. I asked Smittie if I should go for it. He told me no, that I should just lay up and then hit over the pond to the green. I followed Smittie's advice, got on in regulation and 2 putted for a standard par.
Had I thought about it, I would know that the chances of me ever being asked back were pretty slim (the member who invited us was not a close personal friend, but was doing it out of gratitude for some free work my Dad had done for him). With this in mind, I wish I had gone for it in two on that hole. I probably would have gone in the pond that fronts the green, but at least I would have tried. To this day, whenever I'm playing golf on a course where a similar opportunity/shot comes up, I almost always "go for it" (and seldom "make" it.)
The greens were fast, but not nearly as much so as during the tournament (plus they were wet).
After the round, the member took us around the clubhouse. They have Bobby Jones's clubs in a glass case. They're all old, mismatched and with tape on the shafts, which when you think about it makes his achievements seem that much greater.
Another interesting bit of trivia is that at the top of the stairs leading to the second level, theres an old wooden box. That box was a gift from St. Andrews to Bobby Jones and is the voting box used by the members on matters concerning the club.
The member wanted to show us the Crow's Nest where amateurs are invited to stay during the tournament, but the entryway was locked and he couldn't find anyone with a key.
I'm greedy and though I know how special it was to get to play Augusta, I would dearly love to play it again. I still see that member occasionally. When I do I always try to "talk him up" hoping that he might invite me back, but so far, no luck. Whether I ever get invited back or not, it was the most memorable golfing experience of my life even with my terrible score. I would gladly pay several hundred dollars to get the opportunity to play at the absolutely most beautiful course in the world.
