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      The Sandwich Economics of the Masters and Augusta National

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      Experts say $1.50 pimento cheese sandwiches are not just about hospitality. Instead, they are a low-cost way to cultivate one of the biggest brands in American sports.AUGUSTA, Ga. — José María Olazábal hit a tee shot at Augusta National Golf Club’s 12th hole one day this week, jokingly bowed to the spectators and meandered toward the green of one of the great holes in golf.Much of the gallery swiftly headed toward one of the great bargains in sports: the Amen Corner concession stand, where fans at the Masters can come by a meal — sandwich, soft drink and a cookie — for as little as $5.The famously controlling club has spent decades accepting that it cannot, in fact, control the weather. But economic forces surrounding the tournament are well within reason, and so the price of a pimento cheese sandwich has stood at $1.50 since 2003. Adjusted for inflation, and assuming the sandwich was appropriately priced to begin with, it should be about $2.14.Economists believe the enduring bargain, at odds with an era of sticker-shock prices at many athletic events, is not merely a matter of Southern hospitality. Instead, they see hard-nosed, soft-power genius: a thrifty way to cultivate the mystique that has helped make the Masters brand one of the most valuable in sports.“They want to take you back to the days of Bobby Jones — the good old days, if you will,” said John A. List, a professor of economics at the University of Chicago, referring to Augusta National’s co-founder. “They haven’t followed prices, and they’re understanding that their real bottom line is over years. I think they purposefully don’t follow inflation and economics, and that makes the message even stronger.”“Economically,” said List, who attended the Masters in 2019, “I actually thought it was brilliant.”A patron carried her haul of Masters merchandise.Doug Mills/The New York TimesWhile Augusta National may be the most celebrated site of cheap concessions, it also may offer broader lessons for the sports industry. Georgia, with its moderate cost of living and high-wattage sporting events, has emerged as something of a case study. About 145 miles to the west, the Atlanta Falcons cut prices in half a few years ago when they moved into Mercedes-Benz Stadium. The franchise, cognizant that most of the money in the N.F.L. flows from media rights agreements and ticket sales, basked in positive news coverage and, ultimately, more spending by fans.The concept has slowly spread throughout sports. The Baltimore Ravens, San Francisco 49ers and Charlotte Hornets, among other professional teams, have rolled out their own so-called fan-friendly concession pricing initiatives, which have helped draw spectators into stadiums earlier and encouraged others to attend in the first place.At Augusta National, trimming the cost of a pimento cheese by 50 cents, to $1, would be a throwback to the presidency of George Bush — the first one. The club, which wraps its sandwiches in green packaging that blends in with the course, is unlikely to go in the other direction and sharply raise prices, which would mean abandoning the strategy it has long cloaked in the language of gentility and wholesomeness.“We want the experience to not only be the best but to be affordable,” Billy Payne, who spent 11 years as the club’s chairman, said in 2007. “We take certain things very, very seriously — like the cost of a pimento cheese sandwich is just as important as how high the second cut is going to be.”Fred S. Ridley, Payne’s successor, similarly said that Augusta National’s goal is to provide food “at a reasonable price.”Patrons took a lunch break near the 11th hole.Doug Mills/The New York TimesRidley said the low cost “just sort of adds to the feeling” for the sandwiches, though he declined to identify which one he prefers. (“I like them all but try to stay away.”)People, of course, would still eat. But the prospect of higher profit margins, List suggested, is almost certainly beside the point in the minds of Augusta National’s green-jacketed members, who are often titans of business or politics. Whatever quarters are left on the table represent an investment of sorts, experts said, while also aligning well with the ethos of the club and the state.“They want to shock and awe you on the low side, and they could double, triple or quadruple the prices,” List said as he headed to a Chicago White Sox game this week. “I would have noticed and thought that’s kind of normal. And I don’t think the Masters wants to do anything common.”Exactly how much money runs through Augusta National is unclear, a multimillion-dollar mystery that satisfies a tradition of privacy at a club that has long faced accusations of racism and sexism.Augusta National does not say how many tickets it sells for $75 for practice rounds or $115 for competition days, or how much it makes from the decidedly-not-low-cost merchandise fans buy and lug around in clear plastic bags. Its television deal with CBS has long been a series of one-year contracts that are not believed to be hugely lucrative for either the network or the club. It accepts only a handful of blue-chip sponsors, and Ridley said this week that the club would donate its proceeds from a new video game partnership with EA Sports to a foundation that promotes golf.And Augusta National is unafraid to capitalize on its food when it is bound for places beyond its gates. This year, fans could have Masters fare delivered to their doorsteps, including pounds of pimento cheese, pork and chocolate chip cookies. For good measure, the $150 packages included 25 of the dishwasher-safe plastic cups that are the tournament’s premier souvenirs.A sandwich, drink and a cookie costs around $5.Doug Mills/The New York TimesBut whatever Augusta’s financials look like, they are almost assuredly helped by the simplicity of the club’s menu. Along with the pimento cheese, which is served between two pieces of white bread, there is an egg salad sandwich for $1.50. This year brought the introduction of a new sandwich, chicken salad on a brioche bun, for $3. The most expensive selections on the menu are the beers, served in green plastic cups for the princely sum of $5.Pimento cheese, a staple of Southern events from backyard gatherings to black-tie weddings, has been on Augusta National’s menu since the early days, and is the most famous of the club’s culinary offerings.Nathalie Dupree, the cookbook author and pre-eminent Southern chef, said the acid in the mayonnaise acts as a preservative, clearing the way for golf fans to carry a couple of the sandwiches in a pocket or purse for a few hours and nibble at them under Georgia’s warm spring sun.“It is sort of Southern genius that they are going to figure out a sandwich for the heat,” Dupree said. “You are always working around the heat, before air-conditioning, particularly.”The sandwich was appearing prominently in newspaper accounts of the tournament by the 1970s, which was also when the Junior League of Augusta published its recipe book, “Tea-Time at the Masters.” The club’s pimento cheese recipe was not included, though a step-by-step guide for a concoction christened cheese paste, made from Cheddar, cream cheese and pimento cheese — at room temperature — did.The woman who submitted it? “Mrs. Arnold Palmer,” Winifred Palmer, whose husband had already won his four Masters titles by then.“My mother in particular was very fond of the pimento cheese sandwiches at Augusta,” said Amy Palmer Saunders, who chairs the Arnold & Winnie Palmer Foundation. “She would’ve enjoyed experimenting with anything like that in the kitchen.”Augusta National keeps the concession menu simple and affordable.Doug Mills/The New York TimesThe players also revere the food, simple as it is.Bubba Watson, who won in 2012 and 2014, said he favors the barbecue and pimento cheese sandwiches, asking club staff to hold the egg salad and slip in more pork when he orders a trio known as the Taste of the Masters. And before he won last year’s tournament, Dustin Johnson declared simply, “My favorite thing about the Masters is the sandwiches.”To walk the course this week is a chance to hear, no matter the time, someone mulling what they want to eat. The cashiers, accepting only credit or debit cards because of the coronavirus pandemic, are waiting.“They fulfill kind of the dream that you have,” said List, who described Augusta’s approach as “Adam Smith in his glory.”“When you see it on TV, you think it’s a wonderland,” he said of the course. “And Disney looks like a wonderland until they stick it to your wallet.” More

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      At the Masters, Justin Rose Is an Outlier, and Establishes an Early Lead

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      Unlike last year, when the Masters was played in November, a firm Augusta National course fought back, punishing many golfers through the first round, though Rose managed six birdies on the back nine.AUGUSTA, Ga. — A golf course does not have feelings.Or does it?It would be the easiest way to explain the revenge Augusta National Golf Club exacted on the field in the first round of the Masters tournament on Thursday, after the course was routed by many of the same players last year.Five months ago in November, a month when Augusta National is typically just waking from a good slumber, the world’s best golfers arrived to play the 2020 Masters, which was delayed by the coronavirus pandemic. The course was somnolent and unprepared, especially since it got good and sloshed by rain the night before the event began.Golf’s elite took no pity on the venerable, if vulnerable, aristocrat of major championship golf courses. Dustin Johnson’s winning score of 20 under par was a tournament record, and 43 players finished the event under par.Apparently, Augusta National has a good memory. In the first round of the 2021 Masters, the course was roused, ready and itching for retaliation.When the last shot was struck on Thursday, Justin Rose was the outlier with a sparkling seven-under-par 65, which included six birdies on the back nine. That score put him in the lead, four strokes ahead of Brian Harman and Hideki Matsuyama who were tied for second after matching scores of 69.But only 11 other players were under par, and Rose, Harman and Matsuyama were the only golfers breaking 70. Contrast that with the first round in 2020, when a tournament record 24 players scored in the 60s and a whopping 53 were under par.Hideki Matsuyama on the 17th tee. He finished the first round with a three-under-par 69.Doug Mills/The New York TimesPerhaps the field should have been forewarned on Tuesday when Fred Couples, the 1992 Masters champion playing in his 36th Masters, said the Augusta National conditions were the most difficult he had seen in decades. Asked about the greens, which have been drying out all week, Couples said, “If they get any firmer, look out.”The prophecy, aided by swirling winds, came to life on Thursday around the grounds. Jordan Spieth, a former Masters winner, was on a run up the leader board at the midpoint of his round until an errant tee shot on the par-4 ninth hole, followed by a recovery shot that ricocheted off a tree, eventually led to a three-putt and a garish triple bogey. Spieth rallied with an eagle on the 15th hole and consecutive birdies on the 16th and 17th holes, to finish with a one-under-par 71, which left him tied for eighth.The reigning United States Open champion Bryson DeChambeau shot a four-over-par 40 on the front nine, then had an up-and-down final nine. His four-over-par 76 left him in a tie for 60th.After his round, DeChambeau had a lament shared by golfers who have yet to master Augusta National’s subtleties, most notably having to hit approach shots from a downhill lie to an uphill green. Asked how often he sees such a shot on the P.GA Tour, DeChambeau answered: “Not very often, just at Augusta. That’s why I don’t have a problem anywhere else.”Rory McIlroy had an eventful first round and finished with a four-over-par 76.Curtis Compton/Atlanta Journal-Constitution, via Associated PressRory McIlroy, who needs a Masters title to complete the career Grand Slam of all four major golf championships, shot an eventful four-over-par 76. McIlroy not only had six bogeys, he also plunked his father, Gerry, in the back of the leg with a wayward second shot on the seventh hole.The elder McIlroy appeared to be fine, walking away after his son’s golf ball caromed off him. Afterward, McIlroy said he was aiming at his father because he was standing in a good spot. Gerry McIlroy later joked that he wanted an autograph from Rory, which is a customary thing for a player to give a fan who is struck by a shot.“I think he just needs to go and put some ice on,” Rory said, referring to his father with a grin. “Maybe I’ll autograph a bag of frozen peas for him.”Rose opened his round with a one-under-par 35 on the front nine but then blitzed the closing holes with birdies on the 10th and 12th holes, two of Augusta National’s biggest challenges. Rose birdied both par 5s on the back nine, as well as the par-3 16th and daunting par-4 17th hole.His performance was especially impressive because he had not played a competitive round of golf in a month, having withdrawn from the Arnold Palmer Invitational in early March with a back injury. In the end, the layoff may have been beneficial in a variety of ways. For one, it lowered Rose’s expectations for the Masters, something he acknowledged on Thursday evening.“You can just run off instinct a little bit,” Rose, the 2013 United States Open champion, said. “Obviously I’ve competed in these big tournaments quite a few times, and I’ve got one of them to my name, but we’re looking for more.”He also used the time off to spend more time working with his old swing coach Sean Foley, who Rose reunited with late last year. The two first began working together in 2009 and had a brief, recent separation, which is common in the golf world.“Everything I’ve achieved in the game of golf I’ve done it with Sean by my side,” Rose said, adding: “I was tailing off a little bit with my own game through 2019, and I think the lockdown, just being left to my own devices for a little bit too long was probably not a good thing.“So it’s great to be back with Sean, and I trust him implicitly. He knows what works for me and my game.”Four players were five strokes behind Rose at two under par: Patrick Reed, Webb Simpson, both former major champions, and Will Zalatoris and Christiaan Bezuidenhout.“With how difficult it was out there today, with how firm and fast this place played, and the wind picking up,” Reed said. “I’ll definitely take a round of two under par. ”Simpson echoed Reed’s sentiments.“Guys are going to shoot themselves out of the golf tournament on Day 1 in these conditions,” he said. “I knew it would be tough today, but I didn’t know we’d be dealing with gusty winds like we were. So I’m very happy with my score.“I think it’s been five years at least from last time I remember it being this firm, this rough. But it’s fun, too. This golf course is more fun this way because you really have to think, you really have to use the slopes. Otherwise, you can put yourself in some really bad spots.” More

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      At the Masters, Lee Elder Gets Another Moment in the Spotlight

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      The first Black golfer to play the Masters in 1975 is an honorary starter as the 2021 tournament gets underway at Augusta National.AUGUSTA, Ga. — With the sun rising over his shoulders, Lee Elder was introduced to a crowd of several hundred on the first tee of the Masters Tournament on Thursday morning. Forty-six years earlier, on roughly the same spot at Augusta National, Elder had teed off as the first Black man to play in the tournament.“I was just so nervous,” Elder said, recalling the opening moments of his historic 1975 appearance.But on Thursday morning, Elder was at ease and smiling, joining the golf legends Jack Nicklaus and Gary Player as the first Black player included in a decades-long Masters tradition: a celebration of honorary starters who strike the first ceremonial shots of another Masters.Elder, 86, was seated in a white patio chair on the first tee next to about 20 family members, friends and Black P.G.A. golf professionals dressed in formal attire and aligned in a regal row. Recent issues with his mobility would prevent Elder from striking a shot on Thursday but he was greeted first by the chairman of the Augusta National Golf Club, Fred S. Ridley.“Today Lee Elder will inspire us and make history once again — not with a drive, but with his presence, strength and character,” Ridley said.Using the golf vernacular reserved for a player who, by a leading performance, has earned the right to tee off first, Ridley added, “Lee, it is my privilege to say you have the honors.”Elder pushed at the armrests of his chair to rise but wavered as he tried to stand until Player stepped forward and placed a hand under Elder’s left arm to lift him into an upright posture. Turning to the surrounding congregation, Elder nodded his head with a wave of his left hand, then raised the driver in his right hand as if to answer the ovation that endured for 40 seconds. Elder, with a grin, then returned to his seat.Lee Elder became an honorary Masters starter 46 years after first playing in the tournament.Doug Mills/The New York Times“Lee, it is my privilege to say you have the honors,” Fred Ridley, chairman of Augusta National, told Elder.Doug Mills/The New York TimesIt has been a sometimes taut atmosphere at the 85th Masters this week as players and tournament officials have been asked about the new, restrictive Georgia elections law roiling the state. While Elder was invited to participate in the 1975 tournament — many years after he and other Black players were qualified to play — Augusta National did not admit its first Black member until 1990, and its first woman until 2012.Elder’s role in the first tee ceremony, viewed as long overdue, has been much anticipated since it was announced last year and then delayed by the coronavirus pandemic. The symbolism of his appearance was not lost at a time when the country is undergoing a racial justice reckoning. But for a long moment on Thursday, the focus seemed to be on enveloping Elder in a tribute.Elder acknowledged the crowd on the 18th green during the final round of the 1975 Masters.Leonard Kamsler/Popperfoto, via Getty ImagesElder leaves the clubhouse at Augusta National to get in a practice round.Associated PressElder hits his ball from a sand trap on the 18th hole.Associated PressAt a news conference shortly after the first tee ceremony, Player recalled that in 1969 he invited Elder to play in his home country of South Africa.“It’s quite sad to think that in those days, with the segregation policy that South Africa had, that I had to go to my president and get permission for Lee Elder to come and play in our PGA,” Player said, adding, “I was called a traitor.”Player recalled that Elder was greeted by loud standing ovations.“We then went on to other venues,” Player said. “You can imagine at that time in history how encouraging it was for a young Black boy to see this champion playing.”Elder recalled that he won 21 of 23 events in 1966 on the United Golf Association tour, which was a series of tournaments for African-American golfers at a time when they were regularly excluded from other top professional golf events. The next year, he bid to join the PGA Tour — he needed to provide a copy of a bank statement balance of $6,500 — and by 1969 found himself in a playoff to win the prestigious Firestone Open in Nicklaus’s native state of Ohio.As Elder told the story on Thursday, Nicklaus, who was seated next to him on the news conference dais, interjected, “I robbed you, didn’t I?”Elder turned to Nicklaus, “You did.”Nicklaus explained that he made three putts of more than 35 feet to keep the playoff alive. Finally, Nicklaus prevailed to win the tournament.“He got lucky,” said Elder, who unsuccessfully suppressed a snicker, even a giggle.He was having a good day.“It was one of the most emotional experiences that I have ever witnessed or been involved in,” he said of the first tee ceremony on Thursday.Pausing to adjust his eyeglasses, Elder added: “My heart is very soft this morning, not heavy soft, but soft because of the wonderful things that I have encountered. It’s a great honor and I cherish it very much.” More

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      For Masters Second-Timers, a Chance at a More Normal Augusta National

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      The greens are firm and fast. Spectators are back. The course is blush with azaleas, not autumn’s colors. For young players, this tournament is an opportunity for a more traditional Masters experience.AUGUSTA, Ga. — C.T. Pan had an exceptional Masters Tournament debut last November, finishing 10 under par for a tie for seventh place and $358,417 in prize money. But the coronavirus pandemic and the tournament’s timing meant that one of sport’s most hallowed stages was not itself.“This one definitely feels more like my first Masters,” Pan, 29, said this week. “I played nine holes out there with people following, a couple tee shots I had goose bumps just hearing people rooting for me.”For the 13 golfers who contested their inaugural Masters tournament in November and are in the field again this week, this year’s competition can seem like a second try at a first dance with a childhood crush.In November, with Augusta National Golf Club almost empty but autumn’s hues abundant, they found a soft course that played long and was susceptible to plugged balls. Now there are fans ready to offer masked roars amid the athletic and aesthetic splendors of a Georgia spring: greens that are fearsomely fast and firm, and azaleas so vivid that their pinks dazzle even from a driving range or more away.Sungjae Im knows the course will play much different than it did in November.Doug Mills/The New York Times“In November, it was very soft so I knew where to land it and I was confident it was going to stop,” Sungjae Im, who tied for second and had the lowest 72-hole score of any first-year Masters player in history, said through an interpreter. “I need to be strategic on exactly where to land the ball.”Experience, a hard-earned edge at any tournament, is often seen as essential at the Masters. No player has won in his debut appearance since Fuzzy Zoeller conquered the course 42 years ago. Even though 14 first-timers made the cut in November, a Masters record, ask one player after the next, and nearly every one will preach at length about how Augusta National is particularly prone to rewarding the men familiar with it.“The more you play it, the more you understand it,” said Bubba Watson, who won the tournament in 2012 and 2014. “That doesn’t mean you’re going to play well, doesn’t mean you’re going to win. Just means you understand how difficult it is.”Cameron Champ hoped to learn from his mistakes at the 2020 Masters.Doug Mills/The New York TimesMany past winners have offered counsel to newcomers, like when Phil Mickelson, a three-time winner who placed 46th in his first Masters and was that year’s low amateur, spent time in November advising Cameron Champ about how to play No. 17. (“If you’re going to miss this fairway,” Mickelson said as they surveyed the uphill par-4, “miss it right, because you have an angle into the green.” Champ went on to make birdie or par on the hole, known as Nandina, in every competition round.)Jon Rahm recently recalled how he offered a different suggestion to Sebastián Muñoz during November’s final round: “I pretty much told him anything you learn today, this week, forget about it because it will never play like this again, period.”By then, Muñoz had heard a similar message from Vijay Singh and José María Olazábal, two past winners whose views he condensed to nine words: “Man, it’s completely different from what we’re used to.”And so this year is proving awfully different from what the newcomers experienced a few months ago. Some Augusta National staples, of course, are now modestly more familiar: breath-robbing elevation changes, wind patterns, sight lines, hidebound traditions. What November may have offered most, though, was simply a chance to work out Masters jitters, which are to be expected at a course many players grew up revering.“I don’t think I learned that much because the course is completely different now,” said Abraham Ancer, who finished in a tie for 13th in November. “But obviously for me it was a great experience to just get confidence and know that I can play well out here.”Collin Morikawa said he had more confidence at this year’s Masters.Doug Mills/The New York TimesCollin Morikawa, who won the P.G.A. Championship last year, is also more confident because of his initial Masters outing. Then again, he noted, he had arrived at Augusta National last year with similar certainty.“I thought I was all right and I thought I could bring my ‘A’ game and come out here and win,” he said. He finished in a tie for 44th.“Course knowledge really does help,” he said this week. “Obviously the more reps you get, the better off you’re going to be. It’s never going to hurt you. So finally to be out here for a second time, feel a lot more comfortable, I know where things are, and I know kind of just the nuances of everything.”He said he had been refining a new driver shot and hoped it would offer him a solution for the straighter holes that are not always compatible with his favored cuts.“Last year I tried working in a draw, and I wasn’t playing my game,” he said. “I almost tried to, like, tailor my game to how the course fit instead of playing my game and if the hole didn’t hit me, find another way.”Champ suggested he was trying to learn from mistakes, no matter how different the course may be now. But he and others said they were delighted that fans, called patrons in Masters parlance, were back on the course in limited numbers.“It is a little weird, but this feels a little more, obviously, like the Masters,” he said just as a cheer rose from the back nine. “Like I said, you can hear the fans — that’s probably on 16 back over there — so it just gives you a little more energy, a little more vibe, especially if you’re playing well.”The exacting standards of spectators at the Masters, who are thought to be among the most discerning in golf, did not bother Ancer. The pageantry, after all, is part of the tournament’s appeal and, for some golfers, part of the strategy to play a little better.“It feels nice to be on 12 and hit in front of people, and obviously you feel a little more of a pressure,” he said, referring to a hole where fans are nestled around the tee box. “But it’s nice. I like to feel that.”He is not one of those players who sees this year’s tournament as his first at Augusta National. At the same time, he has not quite moved on from the 2020 edition.The invitation, he said, is still in his living room. More

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      How to Grip a Putter: 9 Ways the Pros Use

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      The claw. The two thumbs. The alternative reverse overlap. Every golfer at this week’s Masters Tournament has a preferred way to putt and a reason for doing it.AUGUSTA, Ga. — Accurate putting is widely considered the most pivotal golf skill, and the most intractable. While golfers generally hold their clubs the same way for a full swing, when it comes to rolling a little white ball into a hole roughly four inches wide, even the best players in the world contort their hands and arms into exotic grips to calm their nerves and foster consistency.Here are nine ways that top golfers at this week’s Masters Tournament try to solve the eternal puzzle of putting:Lee WestwoodThe ClawDoug Mills/The New York TimesLee Westwood: The ClawPopularized about 25 years ago, the claw grip, in right-handed golfers, features a right hand that does not merge with a stabilizing left hand at the top of the putter, as was done in conventional grips for decades. The right hand branches out on its own, with the putter pinched claw-like between the thumb and forefinger, which can purposely make the right hand more passive in the stroke.Bryson DeChambeauThe Arm LockDoug Mills/The New York TimesBryson DeChambeau: The Arm LockA college physics major whose early nickname on the PGA Tour was “the mad scientist,” DeChambeau was ranked 145th in putting on the PGA Tour until he converted to the arm-lock method and improved his putting ranking to 28th. It’s all about keeping the proper angles: DeChambeau turns his elbows outward in opposite directions and his wrists inward. Simple.Jordan SpiethThe Left-Hand LowDoug Mills/The New York TimesJordan Spieth: The Left-Hand LowThe left-hand low grip is likely the most widely used nontraditional way to grip the putter for right-handed golfers. It puts the left hand below the right hand and in an authoritative position to control the path of the putter head instead of a golfer’s dominant right hand. Interestingly, in Spieth’s case, he is naturally left-handed even though he plays golf right-handed.Matt WallaceTwo ThumbsDoug Mills/The New York TimesMatt Wallace: Two ThumbsWallace has his palms facing each other with both thumbs on the top of the putter shaft and the index fingers placed along opposing sides of the putter. In theory, this creates symmetry and permits the hands to hang straight down, rather than one above the other in a conventional grip. The shoulders remain level, which makes it easier to develop a (sometimes) preferred pendulum putting motion. Also known as the prayer grip.Phil MickelsonLefty ClawDoug Mills/The New York TimesPhil Mickelson: Lefty ClawMickelson is right-handed in most things he does other than golf, and his right hand, with a pointed index finger (sometimes called a pencil grip), becomes the top part of his version of the claw grip. The left hand is in the guiding position. Mickelson values the claw because it makes it easier to have “a longer, smoother stroke” on the fast greens of the Masters and tour events.Tiger WoodsThe Reverse OverlapDoug Mills/The New York TimesTiger Woods: The Reverse OverlapAlthough Woods is not at this year’s Masters, a photo from the 2020 tournament shows Woods using what is perhaps the most common putting grip in golf. He has rarely strayed from the revered reverse overlap. His left forefinger lies across the right hand, settling between the third and fourth fingers. Woods says the best part of the grip is the unity it brings to both hands.Brooks KoepkaAlternative Reverse OverlapDoug Mills/The New York TimesBrooks Koepka: Alternative Reverse OverlapKoepka, a four-time major champion, has adapted the reverse overlap by extending his right forefinger rather than curling it around the shaft. One intended advantage of this style is that the angle of the right wrist can remain the same through the stroke so that the putter face does not waver open or closed and cause an inconsistent ball path.Adam ScottLong Putter ClawDoug Mills/The New York TimesAdam Scott: Long Putter ClawScott is the only Masters champion to have used the older version of a long putter, which could be anchored against the chest. Revised rules forbid the top of the putter touching the body frame, but Scott has adjusted with a right-hand low claw grip. He also tends to leave the flagstick in the hole while putting, which is not common.Justin RoseModified ClawDoug Mills/The New York TimesJustin Rose: Modified ClawRose likes to think of his left arm as the driving force of his stroke, and he frequently practices putting with his left hand only. His version of the claw has his two right fingers over the top of the shaft instead of resting on the side. Asked why he prefers this grip, Rose had the most basic, succinct answer of all: “It feels simpler.”

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      Tiger Woods Was Driving About 40 MPH Past The Speed Limit When He Crashed

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      The stretch of road where Woods crashed in February is known for speeding and crashes.Tiger Woods was speeding when he crashed his sport-utility vehicle in February, reaching speeds of more than 80 m.p.h. in a 45 m.p.h. zone on winding road near Los Angeles, according to Los Angeles County Sheriff Alex Villanueva.Villanueva said Woods was traveling between 84 and 87 miles per hour when he lost control, crossing over a median and hitting the curb on the opposite of the road. The vehicle struck a tree at an estimated 75 m.p.h. and was sent airborne, eventually stopping in some brush.“The primary causal factor for this traffic collision was driving at a speed unsafe for the road conditions and the inability to negotiate the curve of the roadway,” said Villanueva.Woods was not cited for driving too fast and no criminal charges will be filed, Villanueva said. He added that there were no signs of impairment or intoxication, and that Woods was wearing his seatbelt.The captain of the Lomita Sheriff’s Station, James Powers, said that data was obtained from the vehicle’s event data recorder, known colloquially as the black box. The data showed that Woods had hit the accelerator throughout the crash, and that the pressure applied to the pedal was 99 percent. Powers said he believed that Woods inadvertently hit the accelerator while trying to brake.Woods has no recollection of the collision, and there were no witnesses to the crash.Woods was not cited, Villanueva said, because under California law that typically requires either an independent witness or a law enforcement officer to witness the excessive speed. He said that Woods did not receive any special treatment, and nobody would be cited for speeding in a solo vehicle collision without any witnesses.Woods had to be extracted from his S.U.V. after the crash on the morning of Feb. 23 and taken to the hospital, where he underwent several surgeries on his right leg. Doctors not involved in Woods’s care have predicted an extremely difficult recovery from his injuries.During a news conference, Los Angeles County Sheriff Alex Villanueva showed a depiction of the path of the crash.via Los Angeles County Sheriffs DepartmentWoods crashed his car on a windy and tricky stretch of Hawthorne Boulevard that is known for car crashes near Rancho Palos Verdes, a coastal city in Los Angeles County. According to data collected by the sheriff’s department, there were 13 crashes, four with injuries, from Jan. 3, 2020, to Feb. 23 of this year within a 1.35-mile stretch of Hawthorne Boulevard that includes the site where Woods crashed.That stretch of road is also known for speeding. Deputy Carlos Gonzalez, the first emergency responder to arrive at the scene, said at a news conference in February that he had sometimes seen vehicles going more than 80 miles per hour on Hawthorne Boulevard.According to a diagram of the collision shown by the sheriffs department, there were four areas of impact. The first two were the sides of the median, the third was the curb and the fourth was the tree. Woods’s vehicle rolled several times before coming to a stop. After he hit the tree, his S.U.V. went “airborne” where it did “somewhat of a pirouette,” according to Powers.Before the crash, Woods had hosted a golf tournament in the Pacific Palisades area of Los Angeles.Ryan Kang/Associated PressWoods was quickly taken to Harbor-U.C.L.A. Medical Center, where he underwent emergency surgery, and then was transferred to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center for follow-up procedures. He spent several days in the hospital receiving treatment, though there is still some confusion about the exact nature of his injuries.Dr. Anish Mahajan, the acting chief executive of Harbor-U.C.L.A., said in a statement the night after the crash that both bones in Woods’s lower right leg, the tibia and the fibula, had been broken in multiple places and were “open fractures,” meaning the bones had pierced his skin.The statement did not describe any injuries to Woods’s left leg, though Daryl L. Osby, the Los Angeles County fire chief, had said earlier that Woods had “serious injuries” to both legs.Woods underwent back surgery, his fifth, in Dec. 2020, just the latest injury to slow his golf career. He has won just one major golf championship since 2008.February’s crash is not the first time Woods’s life, and career, has been derailed by a car crash. In 2009 he crashed his S.U.V. into a fire hydrant outside his Florida home in the middle of the night. He was knocked unconscious and was taken to a hospital in an ambulance, where he was treated for minor facial injuries.But the incident is remembered mostly for what happened next and the fallout for his career. There were numerous reports of Woods’s infidelities and an apology in which he admitted cheating on his wife. He lost numerous sponsors and stepped away from golf for months. Woods and Elin Nordegren eventually divorced.Woods was also arrested in 2017 in Florida, after police found him asleep in his car on the side of a road at 3 a.m. with the engine running. Woods blamed the incident on the interaction of several prescription medicines, including Vicodin, and did not have any alcohol in his system. He eventually entered a diversion program for first-time D.U.I. offenders, and pleaded guilty to reckless driving.Captain Powers said there was no odor of alcohol, open containers or any narcotics in the vehicle or on Woods after the February crash. Woods told law enforcement investigators that he had not been drinking and had not taken any prescription pills. Investigators did not obtain or test Woods’s blood.Woods, who lives in Florida, was in Southern California to host the Genesis Invitational at the Riviera Country Club in the Pacific Palisades section of Los Angeles the weekend before the crash. Genesis Motor is a luxury vehicle division of Hyundai. Woods was driving a 2021 Genesis GV80 S.U.V., which was provided to him during the tournament; he is known for always driving himself in a courtesy car at tournaments.Sheriff Villanueva said at a news conference last week that the cause of the crash had been determined, but citing California privacy laws, said it could not be released without Woods’s consent. Woods eventually waived his right to privacy and authorized the release of the report. More

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      The Masters Is Business as Usual as Georgia Faces a Political Onslaught

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      Major League Baseball pulled its All-Star Game from the Atlanta area, but Georgia’s most cherished sporting event remains firmly rooted in the state.AUGUSTA, Ga. — Georgia and its new elections law are caught up in a political riptide.But there’s scant evidence of that on and around the grounds of Augusta National Golf Club, where the state’s most cherished sporting event, the Masters, begins play on Thursday. There are no protests along Washington Road. There are only limited calls in Georgia, even among the law’s fiercest critics, to upend a springtime ritual at a club that stands on what was once an indigo plantation and did not admit a Black member until 1990.Indeed, even after Major League Baseball chose to move its All-Star Game from Georgia to protest the law that restricts access to voting, there was little doubt that the Masters would go on as planned this week — a reflection of golf’s Republican lean, but also of Augusta National’s honed willingness to defy pressure and, crucially, the reality that the mighty, mystique-filled brand of the Masters hinges on one course, and one course alone.“When you think about the Masters golf tournament, the first major of the year, the Augusta National Golf Club, to suggest that it ‘doesn’t happen’ in Augusta really speaks to people’s lack of knowledge about the Augusta National and, more importantly, the Masters,” said Mayor Hardie Davis Jr. of Augusta, a former Democratic legislator in the state and an avowed opponent of the new elections law.Tournament play will begin less than one week after baseball’s announcement about the All-Star Game, an exhibition that will now be played in Denver and, unlike the Masters, is staged in a different city each year. But Augusta National is still facing scrutiny from well outside its gates, not least because its membership includes executives whose current and former companies have come under pressure to condemn the machinations in Atlanta, the state capital.At the White House on Tuesday, President Biden said it was “up to the Masters” whether the tournament should be moved out of Georgia. He added that it was “reassuring to see that for-profit operations and businesses are speaking up.”Officials at the club, which remained all-male until 2012, did not respond to requests for comment about the law ahead of the tournament. Augusta National’s chairman, Fred S. Ridley, is scheduled to hold his annual news conference on Wednesday, when he will most likely be asked about the measure, which, among other provisions, limited the time for voters to request absentee ballots and handed broad powers to the Republican-controlled Legislature.Ridley, who became Augusta National’s chairman in 2017, has often had a more conciliatory tone than his predecessors on whatever controversy percolated around the tournament. Less than 20 years ago, Chairman William Johnson, whose nickname was Hootie, faced pressure to allow a woman to join Augusta National and responded by decreeing that a woman might someday be invited to join “but that timetable will be ours and not at the point of a bayonet.”At the height of the protests in 2003, Augusta National held the Masters without the support of television sponsors. It was “unfair,” Johnson said at the time, “to put the Masters media sponsors in the position of having to deal with this pressure.”But last autumn, with the country engaged in a sustained debate about some of the very racial inequities that had endured at Augusta National over its history, Ridley said that the club and three corporate partners had pledged $10 million for a pair of underserved Augusta neighborhoods that have grappled with generational poverty and neglect.Lee Elder became the first Black golfer to compete at the Masters in 1975.Doug Mills/The New York TimesOn Thursday, Lee Elder, who in 1975 became the first Black golfer to play the Masters, will join the traditional honorary starters Jack Nicklaus and Gary Player to hit the 2021 tournament’s ceremonial tee shots. To many people, Augusta National’s ultimate decisions were welcome but tardy, a familiar criticism for a club where opaqueness and caution are among the norms.This time, golf has given Ridley some cover. The sport has expressed measured anger — and suggested it had no desire, or willingness, to boycott Georgia.The PGA Tour, which does not control the Masters, said over the weekend that it would not move the Tour Championship, which is scheduled to be played in Atlanta, because of the economic and charitable repercussions the decision would have on nearby impoverished areas. It added, though, that the choice “to stage an event in a particular market should not be construed as indifference to the current conversation around voting rights” and that it was “a critical national priority to listen to the concerns about voter suppression — especially from communities of color that have been marginalized in the past.”The P.G.A. of America, which is planning to hold the Women’s P.G.A. Championship in suburban Atlanta in June, said it was “monitoring developments.”“We believe elections should be accessible, fair and secure, and support broad voter participation,” it added.And almost none of the sport’s top players have made open demands for any other approach, a contrast to the tactics of the Major League Baseball Players Association, which had made its reservations about the All-Star Game public.The golfer Collin Morikawa called the issue of voting “very important.”Doug Mills/The New York TimesCollin Morikawa, who won last year’s P.G.A. Championship, said this week that issues of voting were “very important” and that he did not believe that golfers were “stepping out of our way to block it out and forget about it.”“The topic of voter rights and all that, that should be the topic that we talk about, not if we are here playing golf,” he said.Bryson DeChambeau, who is hoping to contend after a disappointing Masters showing last year, avoided the clearest political tripwires but cited golf’s contributions to the communities where tournaments are held.“We try to show, no matter what happens, we’re going to do our best to be an example for the world,” he said. “I think when those times come about, we have an opportunity to show the world what we can provide.”But when asked on Tuesday whether golf or Augusta National should take a forceful stand against the law, Cameron Champ, who is biracial and one of the few Black players on the tour, replied, “I would think so” and moments later described baseball’s decision as “a big statement.”“It really targets certain Black communities, makes it harder for them to vote,” Champ, who wore shoes reading “Black Lives Matter” at a tournament last year, said of the Georgia statute.A crucial question for Augusta National in the coming weeks and months will be how to balance its views with whatever pressure its handful of tournament sponsors or the companies employing its members may face. A similar dynamic surfaced in the early 2000s, when Citigroup effectively acknowledged that Sanford I. Weill, an Augusta National member who was then the company’s chairman, had told the club that he supported adding women to the membership.Condoleezza Rice was one of the first two women to become members of Augusta National, in 2012.Doug Mills/The New York TimesIf Augusta National were to condemn the law, its message would carry outsize influence in the state.Although the club’s membership roster is not public, the guarded grounds are a gathering place for many of the South’s most powerful figures and their guests. And its known members include bipartisan political royalty, including Condoleezza Rice, who was raised in segregated Alabama and was secretary of state in the George W. Bush administration, and Sam Nunn, a Democrat who represented Georgia in the United States Senate for about 24 years.M.L.B. Commissioner Rob Manfred at the 2020 Masters last November.Rob Carr/Getty ImagesIn a letter on Monday, Senator Marco Rubio, Republican of Florida, asked Rob Manfred, the M.L.B. commissioner, whether he would surrender his Augusta National membership. A league spokesman did not respond to a request for comment, but Rubio opined that he was “under no illusion” that Manfred would quit because that would “require a personal sacrifice, as opposed to the woke corporate virtue signaling of moving the All-Star Game.”Davis, Augusta’s mayor, praised baseball’s move but said he was not worried about the tournament, which local officials believe is responsible for at least $50 million in economic impact, when the Masters is running at normal capacity. He argued that people in the city would challenge and protest the new law but also be deeply protective of their most renowned athletic tradition.“This is our sports team,” he said. “We don’t have the Falcons, the Cowboys or the Baltimore Ravens. But what we do have, every year, same time, is the Masters golf tournament.” More

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      Here Are The 5 Golfers to Watch at The 2021 Masters Tournament

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      Tiger Woods is out with injuries, and Dustin Johnson is back to defend his title. Here are five more golfers to keep an eye on.When the best golfers in the world tee off at Augusta National Golf Club this week, the Masters will seem, to a large degree, like the Masters again. The azaleas should be blooming, and there will be fans, if only a limited amount, on the grounds.That was not the case in 2020. Because of the pandemic, the tournament was held in November instead of its traditional spot in April, and it was played without the boisterous galleries.Dustin Johnson, the top-ranked player in the world, won by five strokes with a record score of 20-under 268. Tiger Woods, the 2019 champion, tied for 38th. Woods won’t be playing at the Masters. He is recovering from injuries from a February car accident in California.Johnson, vying for his third major title, will be one of the favorites, along with Justin Thomas (No. 2) and Jon Rahm (No. 3).Here are five other players to keep an eye on.Bryson DeChambeauThere doesn’t seem to be a golf course that can neutralize DeChambeau’s distance off the tee. He’s averaging 320.8 yards, the best on the PGA Tour.It will serve him well at Augusta National. He should be able to easily reach the greens in two shots on the par-5s, which provide the best scoring opportunities. His power isn’t the only impressive part of his game. DeChambeau, ranked No. 5, has been able to make a lot of crucial putts.Before last year’s United States Open at Winged Foot, it wasn’t certain whether the way he planned to attack the course would pay off; the fairways were narrow and the rough was thick.No problem. DeChambeau, 27, won by six strokes and was the only player to finish under par.DeChambeau hasn’t had much success in his previous four appearances at Augusta. His best finish was a tie for 21st in 2016, just before he turned pro.Michael Reaves/Getty ImagesTony FinauSooner or later, Finau, 31, is going to break through on the big stage. Augusta National could be the place.Finau, too, hits the ball a long way. He is 15th on the tour in birdies and 11th in eagles. The course seems to suit him well. In his three starts, he has two top 10 finishes, including in 2019 when he tied for fifth, two shots behind Woods.Since 2017, Finau, ranked No. 13 in the world, has recorded 37 top 10s without a victory. His lone triumph came at the Puerto Rico Open in 2016.He came close to his second victory in January and February. He finished second in the Farmers Insurance Open and the Genesis Invitational. He shot a final-round 64 at the Genesis, but lost in a playoff to Max Homa.Finau has played well in the majors. In his last 11 appearances, he has recorded seven top 10s.Michael Reaves/Getty ImagesPatrick CantlayCantlay, 29, seems to always be in the hunt. In his last 10 starts, he has finished in the top 20 eight times. The only hiccup was a missed cut at last month’s Players Championship.Like Finau, he makes a lot of birdies. Heading into the Masters, he ranks fourth on the PGA Tour this season, with 4.68 birdies per round. He’s 13th in scoring average at just over 70.Cantlay played extremely well at the recent World Golf Championships-Dell Technologies Match Play tournament. In his first two matches against Brian Harman and Carlos Ortiz, Cantlay recorded 14 birdies and an eagle. He failed to make it to the round of 16, losing in a playoff to Harman.Ranked No. 10, Cantlay trailed by only a shot heading into the final two rounds of the 2020 Masters. He faded over the weekend to end up in a tie for 17th. In 2019, he tied for ninth.Michael Reaves/Getty ImagesJordan SpiethUntil recently, it would have been a stretch to suggest that Spieth, 27, would be a factor at Augusta National. He hadn’t won a tournament in more than three years. Before 2018, he won 11 times, including three majors.The drought is over. Spieth captured the Valero Texas Open on Sunday by two strokes over Charley Hoffman. It was his first victory since the 2017 Open Championship at Royal Birkdale.Spieth has played very well since February. He posted top 10 finishes in the Waste Management Phoenix Open, AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am and Arnold Palmer Invitational. The only negative was that he did not perform well enough on Sundays. That wasn’t the case in Texas. He shot a 66 in the final round.What’s important, as always at the Masters, will be the ability to negotiate the treacherous greens. Spieth has handled the challenge well.His record in the tournament has been outstanding. He won the 2015 Masters with a score of 18-under 270. He has finished in the top three on three other occasions, including in 2014 when he was only 20.Michael Reaves/Getty ImagesSergio GarciaIn his last two starts — at the Players Championship and the Dell match play tournament — Garcia, 41, flashed some of the magic that has made him such a dynamic player for more than two decades.In the Players, he shot a 65 in the first round and was still in the hunt in the final round until he faded and tied for ninth. At the match play tournament, he made it to the quarterfinals before losing to Victor Perez.His walking off with a second green jacket — he won the 2017 Masters, his only major title — still seems like a long shot, but his recent play makes him a more viable contender. He is still a very good ball striker. The challenge for him, as usual, will be to make enough critical putts. More