2013 Masters Discussion Thread, Update with Tiger's Illegal Drop (Post #343)

[bplewis24]

http://espn.go.com/golf/masters13/story/_/id/9146854/resale-masters-tickets-hits-record-7k-mark

Not sure if you guys have seen this yet.  Sounds like a confluence of events is being credited for a surge in Masters tickets:

Quote:

"I have never seen anything like this," said Patrick McGee, whose sports and entertainment marketing firm has taken care of corporate clients in Augusta for the last decade. "It's the combination of the Final Four being in Atlanta, Tiger as well as a more stringent effort by Augusta National to make it tougher to scalp tickets."

I'm thinking that this has more to do with Tiger than the Final Four, but I could be wrong.  However, this seems like too much of a coincidence:

Quote:

"It's the first time I've seen prices at this level since 1997," Jernigan said.

That's the last time prices soared above $7,000. Some badges sold for as much as $11,000 each as people wanted to see the new kid on the block, Tiger Woods, who went on to win the event for his first major championship.

[Rick Martin]

Quote:

Originally Posted by bplewis24

http://espn.go.com/golf/masters13/story/_/id/9146854/resale-masters-tickets-hits-record-7k-mark

Not sure if you guys have seen this yet.  Sounds like a confluence of events is being credited for a surge in Masters tickets:

Quote:

"I have never seen anything like this," said Patrick McGee, whose sports and entertainment marketing firm has taken care of corporate clients in Augusta for the last decade. "It's the combination of the Final Four being in Atlanta, Tiger as well as a more stringent effort by Augusta National to make it tougher to scalp tickets."

I'm thinking that this has more to do with Tiger than the Final Four, but I could be wrong.  However, this seems like too much of a coincidence:

Quote:

"It's the first time I've seen prices at this level since 1997," Jernigan said.

That's the last time prices soared above $7,000. Some badges sold for as much as $11,000 each as people wanted to see the new kid on the block, Tiger Woods, who went on to win the event for his first major championship.

Families hold rights to the badges for a lifetime and some "rent them out" each year. Against Augusta National rules -and if they find out, loss of the badge forever.

When I lived in Augusta, a broker got in over his head with commitments, that he eventually "offed" himself and committed suicide because of the trouble he got into with illegal badge sales.

-------------------------------------

Agent who failed to provide 100 Masters badges kills self

A Columbia County businessman hired to provide about 100 Masters badges for corporate clients killed himself Friday morning after it became apparent he could not meet his obligations.

Allen F. Caldwell III, 40, of Rabun Valley Lane, Martinez, was found dead at his residence by his wife, said Deputy Coroner Vernon Collins. Police say Mr. Caldwell shot himself once with a 12-gauge shotgun.

Mr. Caldwell's company, The Concierge, was in a partnership with Atlanta-based World Golf Hospitality, which specializes in golf packages for corporate clients.

The companies recently opened The Clubhouse on Washington Road, an upscale hospitality center where corporations lease tables during Masters for $22,000 apiece.

Tim Stoesz, an attorney and spokesman for World Golf Hospitality and The Concierge, said things went awry when tickets Mr. Caldwell had planned to buy were sold to someone else apparently willing to pay a higher price.

"We at World Golf handled the corporate hospitality and marketed packages to corporations and individuals," Mr. Stoesz said. Mr. Caldwell's role was to acquire the coveted badges.

"We contracted for a certain number of tickets," he said. "Allen was unable to provide them. We continued working with Allen to do everything we could to help Allen - and fulfill our obligations to our clients - up until late evening Thursday."

Glenn Greenspan, the Augusta National Golf Club's communications director, issued a statement Friday reminding people that selling badges violates club policy and the credential agreement with badge recipients.

"Consistent with our previous policy, individuals attempting to use stolen, lost, counterfeit tickets or tickets purchased in the secondary market will be denied admission," the statement said.

Friday morning, after hearing of Mr. Caldwell's suicide, World Golf president Brendon Lillis informed a disappointed group of corporate clients there would no tickets. And they weren't happy.

"It's the most bizarre thing I've ever seen," said one client, an Atlanta telecommunications executive who paid World Golf in advance for the badges. "I wouldn't even believe it if I hadn't been through it."

The client, who spoke on the condition he and his corporation not be named, paid several thousand dollars in advance for badges that were to be included in a costlier package with lodging and rounds of golf at local courses.

"They were supposed to deliver the tickets Wednesday," he said. "Then we were told to wait til 7:30 Thursday. After that, we were told there was a problem and we'd have to wait 'til today (Friday)."

Mr. Stoesz said he was unaware of any situation, other than the ticket problem, that could have led to Mr. Caldwell's suicide.

"We did not know Allen's exact business circumstances, but we did have a large number of clients and Allen was our provider," he said. "We were happy to have him as our partner. We're all very upset. It's a hard thing to go through during the biggest event of the year."

The problem, according to one broker familiar with the lucrative street trade of Masters badges, is that buyers for several corporations in town this year offered much higher street prices.

"They basically doubled overnight, and whoever he (Mr. Caldwell) was supposed to be getting them from sold them to somebody else for more money," the broker said.

Tickets that had been selling for $3,000 have been sold for $7,000 or $8,000 this year, causing many badge scalpers - and badge holders - to abandon scalping relationships established over many years, he said.

Mr. Stoesz said efforts are under way to rectify the situation with World Golf's clients. "We'd like to see the Masters event be completely untarnished. We'll start dealing with the aftermath next week."

He would not say how much would be refunded to purchasers of the packages, but promised the clients would be satisfied. "We're in the hospitality business and we intend to satisfy every one of our clients."

Capt. Bill Probus of the Columbia County Sheriff's Office said the death is under investigation "as an apparent suicide," but added that no final conclusions have been reached.

He would neither comment on nor discuss the situation involving the sale of Masters badges.

Patrons visiting The Clubhouse Friday found a somber atmosphere and a sign on the door:

"All of us at World Golf Hospitality and The Clubhouse are saddened at the death of Allen Caldwell. He was a good friend. We remember how much he loved Augusta and the Masters Tournament and how excited he was with his new business opportunities here.

"That only makes it more difficult to understand why this happened. We will miss him greatly. Our thoughts and prayers are with his wife and family during this difficult time." - The Clubhouse.

http://chronicle.augusta.com/stories/1997/04/12/met_206703.shtml

[Spyder]

There's someone up here in Ohio who just spent $19,500 last week to make sure he and his wife would be able to go. I think these people are absolutely insane, personally. Whatever floats your boat though.

Personally, I'd take $19,500 as one hell of a down payment on a new 2013 Dodge Viper SRT - but hey, you go ahead and get Ricky Fowler to sign a Puma hat bro! I am a die-hard golf fan who is obsessed with golf in general and I love the game, but I do not $19,500 love it.

[Rick Martin]

Having gone to several Masters over the years, now I think that the best seat is sitting in your recliner w/ your beer in the fridge and BBQ in the back yard watching the tourney on the big screen HDTV. No fighting the "mobs" (blasphemous, I know), worrying about parking, getting good views, etc.

Easier to follow the leaders and flow of the tournament anyway.

Would recommend just getting a practice round just to see the course- then head home and watch on the tube for the main event.

[bplewis24]

Originally Posted by Rick Martin

Agent who failed to provide 100 Masters badges kills self

A Columbia County businessman hired to provide about 100 Masters badges for corporate clients killed himself Friday morning after it became apparent he could not meet his obligations.

I noticed a reference to that in the ESPN link, but they didn't go in depth and made it sound like he offed himself simply because he couldn't get badges that he was promised.  I figured there must have been more to the story.

[Zeph]

How much is a ticket to the Masters if you buy once they are released, compared to regular events?

[k-troop]

Having gone to several Masters over the years, now I think that the best seat is sitting in your recliner w/ your beer in the fridge and BBQ in the back yard watching the tourney on the big screen HDTV. No fighting the "mobs" (blasphemous, I know), worrying about parking, getting good views, etc. Easier to follow the leaders and flow of the tournament anyway. Would recommend just getting a practice round just to see the course- then head home and watch on the tube for the main event.

100% agree.

[Rick Martin]

Originally Posted by Spyder

There's someone up here in Ohio who just spent $19,500 last week to make sure he and his wife would be able to go. I think these people are absolutely insane, personally. Whatever floats your boat though.

Personally, I'd take $19,500 as one hell of a down payment on a new 2013 Dodge Viper SRT - but hey, you go ahead and get Ricky Fowler to sign a Puma hat bro! I am a die-hard golf fan who is obsessed with golf in general and I love the game, but I do not $19,500 love it.

People from Asia and Europe travel and are part of the problem w/ inflated prices for badges.  Heard that badges were for going for $5-7k for the four days, but never heard anything like that.

Hotels in the area partake in price gouging. Roach motels charge x3-4 times what they normally charge.

And outside of Augusta National, it's really a podunk town - not much happening there. And Washington Road where Augusta National is located is an eyesore of fast food restaurants up and down the street.

Pretty cool to check out Augusta National, the par 3 course and the surroundings by google map satellite.....surprised that those rich bastards didn't have their course pixellated out for copyright infringement.

Interesting to see that the homes/land that borders the front nine (west side of Berckman's) is becoming cleared out. That used to be a densely populated community. Guess the National bought up the land - must have paid a huge amount for that. Guess they're using it for more parking or other stuff.

https://maps.google.com/maps?oe=utf-8&client;=firefox-a&q;=washington+avenue+augusta,ga&ie;=UTF-8&hq;=&hnear;=0x88f82aff7afe26a1:0x8e6c68a8c1cc9f25,Washington+Rd,+Augusta,+GA≷=us&ei;=LA9jUYLCAYKG8QT6joCoBw&ved;=0CDMQ8gEwAA

[Rick Martin]

Guess she couldn't afford a badge........

--------------------

Woman charged with crashing Augusta National gate

A North Augusta woman is facing charges of drunken driving and property damage after police say she drove through a gate at the Augusta National Golf Club last week.

According to a Richmond County sheriff’s incident report, Page Miriam Hall, 51, of Leigh Place Drive, entered Gate 6 off Berckmans Road in a Nissan Altima around 12:30 a.m. April 2.

Police said Hall disregarded Augusta National security officers’ verbal warnings to stop.

She drove onto the grass at the service entrance and continued driving recklessly on the property, speeding and striking signs.

Hall was taken into custody and charged with driving under the influence and criminal trespass. The incident was captured on surveillance video, the sheriff’s report said.

http://chronicle.augusta.com/news/crime-courts/2013-04-08/woman-charged-crashing-augusta-national-gate

[boogielicious]

Originally Posted by Rick Martin

Having gone to several Masters over the years, now I think that the best seat is sitting in your recliner w/ your beer in the fridge and BBQ in the back yard watching the tourney on the big screen HDTV. No fighting the "mobs" (blasphemous, I know), worrying about parking, getting good views, etc.

Easier to follow the leaders and flow of the tournament anyway.

Would recommend just getting a practice round just to see the course- then head home and watch on the tube for the main event.

I am with you Rick!  My couch is way more comfortable than standing for hours looking over peoples heads.

[Spyder]

Originally Posted by Rick Martin

People from Asia and Europe travel and are part of the problem w/ inflated prices for badges.  Heard that badges were for going for $5-7k for the four days, but never heard anything like that.

Hotels in the area partake in price gouging. Roach motels charge x3-4 times what they normally charge.

And outside of Augusta National, it's really a podunk town - not much happening there. And Washington Road where Augusta National is located is an eyesore of fast food restaurants up and down the street.

Pretty cool to check out Augusta National, the par 3 course and the surroundings by google map satellite.....surprised that those rich bastards didn't have their course pixellated out for copyright infringement.

Interesting to see that the homes/land that borders the front nine (west side of Berckman's) is becoming cleared out. That used to be a densely populated community. Guess the National bought up the land - must have paid a huge amount for that. Guess they're using it for more parking or other stuff.

https://maps.google.com/maps?oe=utf-8&client;=firefox-a&q;=washington+avenue+augusta,ga&ie;=UTF-8&hq;=&hnear;=0x88f82aff7afe26a1:0x8e6c68a8c1cc9f25,Washington+Rd,+Augusta,+GA≷=us&ei;=LA9jUYLCAYKG8QT6joCoBw&ved;=0CDMQ8gEwAA

I do not know the individual that spent that cash personally, but I believe he paid $4,500 per badge and spent an additional ~$10,000 to rent a house near the course for 7 days.

Personally, I agree with what you said previously in that I would rather be grilling and drinking some cold ones (which is what I do every year and 4x a week in the summer) while watching the tournament.

[Rick Martin]

for those with access to Golf Channel......they're showing lots of press conferences leading up to Thursday...you can really O.D. on the coverage if you really wanted to.....

[bplewis24]

Originally Posted by Spyder

I do not know the individual that spent that cash personally, but I believe he paid $4,500 per badge and spent an additional ~$10,000 to rent a house near the course for 7 days.

Personally, I agree with what you said previously in that I would rather be grilling and drinking some cold ones (which is what I do every year and 4x a week in the summer) while watching the tournament.

$1,500/day for rent!  Must be a palace.

[bplewis24]

Originally Posted by Rick Martin

for those with access to Golf Channel......they're showing lots of press conferences leading up to Thursday...you can really O.D. on the coverage if you really wanted to.....

It's a shame the coverage of the actual tournament isn't as thorough.  I have a love-hate relationship with the Masters: first Major of the season and you get incredibly excited for it...to only be able to see just enough coverage to piss you off at missing a lot of the early action.

[Rick Martin]

Some of the best coverage can be found by the Augusta Chronicle, local Augusta paper.

Good pictures of the practice rounds.....Tiger is linked here.

http://www.augusta.com/masters/photos/2013-tigers-practice-round#slide=3

Looks like Tiger played w/ 14 yr old amateur winner....Tianlang Guan

[Spyder]

I really don't want to link anyone to eBay from here, but go to eBay and search "2013 Masters Tickets" and then use the 'Sort' feature to sort the results by Price: Highest. The top 2 results are 2013 Masters Badge + Home Rental. I'm assuming that the guy I referenced purchased a similar package lol. It would be really nice to own a second home around Augusta right about now.

Hell, at approximately $1,400/day ($10,000/week) rent as bplewis24 pointed out, you could pay a $200,000 home off in 20 tournaments. Just take out a 20 year loan and make April installments to carry you through the next year.

Back to reality though.....

I'm starting to second guess my Phil @ -10 pick for the prediction contest. I really hope he pulls it off, but I still have a really odd feeling that a young gun is going to win this tournament.. such as Rory or Rickie.

[Rick Martin]

In case you're watching Michael Breed's show The Golf Fix and wondering at which course he's taping the show - this year it is the Augusta Country Club - an exclusive/private course that borders Augusta National. You can barely see Augusta CC from Augusta National on the 12th and 13th holes, I believe.  I've never had the chance to play it - pretty nice, I hear.

[Golfingdad]

Originally Posted by bplewis24

It's a shame the coverage of the actual tournament isn't as thorough.  I have a love-hate relationship with the Masters: first Major of the season and you get incredibly excited for it...to only be able to see just enough coverage to piss you off at missing a lot of the early action.

They used to be notorious for not even allowing cameras on the front nine.  They would only come on the air for, like, 2 hours on Saturday and Sunday and that was it.  They're a lot better now.  I will be watching Thursday and Friday from my desk here on masters.com.  You can watch Amen corner all day long, or holes 15 & 16 all day long, or one of 2 featured groups.  Actually, it's 7.5 hours of scheduled coverage for each 'featured group' channel, so it might actually be 4 featured groups total.

Then the same schedule again for Friday.

On the weekend, if I remember correctly, they show the leaders entire rounds now.

Definitely no shortage of TV/internet coverage if you have time to sit and watch. :)