FRED RIDLEY

The Masters Club is the formal name of the annual dinner Tuesday night at Augusta National during the Masters in April, and the guest list is restricted to Masters champions and Chairman Fred Ridley. They will be in the room with Masters champions who have not looked upon kindly at the rebel league run by Greg Norman. “They've turned their back on what has allowed them to get to this position,” five-time Masters champion Tiger Woods said in July. He chose not to go, just as he chose not to attend a champions dinner at the British Open at the suggestion of the R&A. “It's probably only funny to me, but I think the Masters Champions Dinner is going to be a little tense compared to how it's been in the past,” Rahm said.

The Masters Club is the formal name of the annual dinner Tuesday night at Augusta National during the Masters in April, and the guest list is restricted to Masters champions and Chairman Fred Ridley. Scottie Scheffler is in charge of the menu as the reigning champion, and one moment last year illustrates how this might be a dinner unlike any other. Scheffler and his wife took a short vacation to Tennessee, walked into a restaurant and were surprised to see Bubba Watson and his wife sitting at one of the tables.

Following last month's news that LIV golfers would be eligible to compete at the 2023 Masters, Jon Rahm said he foresees heightened tensions at the Champions Dinner.

Organizers of the 2023 Masters tournament said that no changes will be made to the invite criteria, meaning that golfers from the PGA Tour and LIV will be eligible to participate.

Undoubtedly, the PGA Tour would have loved the Masters to make a bold, decisive show of support and ban any golfer who is competing in the rival, Saudi-backed LIV Golf tour from receiving an invitation to compete for a green jacket in 2023 and beyond. And no one will qualify via the world golf rankings by 2024. It’s not like Augusta National came out and said they would invite the best players from LIV regardless of world rankings or past accomplishments. Or, more likely, it could follow what at least looks like a lean toward the PGA and still ban LIV players. Or it could stick with the status quo and remain, ostensibly, above the fray, which in practice would result in a decrease in the number of LIV players in the years to come.

The Masters, the smallest field among the four majors, is by invitation and there was some question whether it would honor the PGA Tour suspending players — including past Masters champions — for joining a rival league. “Therefore, as invitations are sent this week, we will invite those eligible under our current criteria to compete in the 2023 Masters Tournament.”Sixteen players with LIV Golf are among the 78 players currently eligible for the Masters. Three others have won majors that come with a five-year exemption: British Open champion Cameron Smith, former U.S. Open and PGA champion Brooks Koepka and former U.S. Open champion Bryson DeChambeau. Players who win PGA Tour events with full FedEx Cup points are eligible, and the club will take anyone else who gets into the top 50 in the world a week before the Masters. LIV Golf does not get world ranking points — its application is pending — and it is unlikely anyone else from LIV would crack the top 50 by then.

The Masters is keeping its criteria the same for next year.

The only color Harold Varner III has been focused on at the Masters is red.

Hideki Matsuyama is a Masters champion and apparently a master host.

Two-time Masters champion Tom Watson has joined an elite fraternity at Augusta National.

Masters Golf Tom Watson gets ready to hit in the honorary starter ceremony before the first round at the Masters golf tournament on Thursday, April 7, 2022, in Augusta, Ga. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel) (Charlie Riedel)AUGUSTA, Ga. — (AP) — The Latest on The Masters (all times local):8:20 a.m.Gary Player, Jack Nicklaus and newcomer Tom Watson have played their ceremonial tee shots and opened this year's Masters. Player, the three-time Masters champion who has long been an advocate of physical fitness, was first to play. And Watson, part of the ceremony for the first time, couldn't resist having a little fun with Player as he headed to the tee. Watson is now the 11th person to have served as an honorary starter at the Masters. ___More AP golf: https://apnews.com/hub/golf and https://twitter.com/AP_SportsCopyright 2022 The Associated Press.

And as it turns out, even Augusta National isn’t immune from an increasingly common issue these days. The Georgia Peach Ice Cream Sandwich — possibly one of the finest $2 desserts in the free world — hasn’t been available at Augusta National this week. “We have had some modest price increases,” Augusta National chairman Fred Ridley said. The par-4 11th at Augusta National is now longer than the par-5 13th. “We are going to go forward on our own timetable and make changes we think to,” Augusta National chairman Fred Ridley said.

As tradition dictates, there is now very bad news to report about Canadian golfers Mike Weir and Mackenzie Hughes.

Golf has a bright future and isn't quite ready to let go of Tiger Woods.

Sorry, that's against the rules in All Sports Golf, the game invented by Texas-based YouTube stars Dude Perfect. Augusta National chairman Fred Ridley quickly grew to embrace the idea of having Dude Perfect turn the 11th, 12th and 13th holes at the club into a content creator's paradise. Well, at least after the 69-year-old Ridley figured out who Dude Perfect was. when told Dude Perfect did its thing at a place where the way things are done hasn't changed much through the years. Maybe Dude Perfect turning portions of Augusta into their own personal playground will become A Thing.

The home of the Masters is making an effort to reach a younger generation of golfers as the tournament nears its 100th birthday.

Bryson DeChambeau stood on the tee box, studied the 500ish yards between himself and the green on the 11th hole at the outer reaches of Augusta National, picked his club of choice from his blue golf bag and let loose. “Fore!” DeChambeau said with a laugh, because what else is there to do when you take on Amen Corner with a tennis racket? DeChambeau's tour around one of the most famed stretches of one of the most famed courses on the planet last month didn't include a golf club.

There was a time when the top golfers at big tournaments would always get a question from Japanese media about Hideki Matsuyama.

Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp praised the Augusta National Golf Club for not caving to the political pressures that have befallen the state recently.

Lee Elder was the first Black player to tee it up at the Masters.

The applause started when Lee Elder’s golf cart began moving toward the first tee.

Only a dozen players managed to break par in the opening round of the Masters.

Don't expect a repeat of Dustin Johnson's record-shattering 20-under win as the Masters tees off.

While a tempest brews outside Magnolia Lane over Georgia’s voting rights law, Augusta National would prefer to keep the focus on blooming azaleas, pimento cheese sandwiches and tricky greens.

No one needed to see the colorful blooms at Augusta National to realize this will be a much different Masters than the last one.

Jon Rahm arrived at the Masters on Wednesday, after not sleeping much or touching a club for the past few days.

Dustin Johnson didn’t feel like his Masters victory was less significant last fall because no fans were at Augusta National to see his win and celebrate with him.

(AP Photo/Charlie Riedel, File)AUGUSTA, Ga. – The record score at Augusta National wasn't all that set Dustin Johnson apart from other Masters champions. No other Masters champion was allowed to keep his green jacket for only five months before it was time to try to win it again. Augusta National is blazing with pink and red and purple azaleas, accented by the white blooms of dogwood. Ad“I think it will be back to feeling like a normal Masters,” Johnson said. Augusta National had no choice but to keep the spectators away in November because of the pandemic, just like the other majors last year.

FILE - Dustin Johnson waves after winning the Masters golf tournament in Augusta, Ga., in a Sunday, Nov. 15, 2020, file photo. Augusta National Chairman Fred Ridley said Tuesday, Jan. 12, 2021, the club intends to allow a limited number of spectators for the Masters on April 8-11, provided it can be done safely, given the coronavirus pandemic. Augusta National Chairman Fred Ridley said Tuesday the club intends to allow a limited number of spectators for the Masters on April 8-11, provided it can be done safely amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Ridley said holding the Masters with only essential personnel made the club confident in its ability to stage a major championship with limited fans. For the Augusta National Women's Amateur and the Drive, Chip and Putt Finals, limited patrons would be allowed, most likely family members.

Langer, a two-time Masters champion and ageless wonder, gets to play two more rounds. He became the oldest player to make the 36-hole cut at the Masters, topping the record by Tommy Aaron in 2000 by 33 days. Tiger Woods constantly cites Langer and Fred Couples as examples of Masters champions who can find their way around the course and post good scores. When golf returned from the pandemic in June, Langer teed it up twice on the PGA Tour because the 50-and-older PGA Tour Champions had not resumed. Langer still decided to check on the policy on Tuesday night during the Masters Club dinner for past champions.

Also, it’s the first bogey-free round for Woods in a major since the 2009 PGA Championship at Hazeltine. The 43-year-old Englishman is leading the Masters after shooting a 7-under 65 in the opening round. But he turned things around in his return to Augusta National, which was delayed for seven months by the coronavirus pandemic. ___2:05 p.m.Tiger Woods is off to a strong start in defense of his Masters championship. He has six top-10 finishes at Augusta National, including a second-place finish in 2010 and a tie for second in 2016.

Augusta National Chairman Fred Ridley announced Wednesday a $10 million donation to help with the redevelopment of what he said were once-thriving communities that have gone through decades of poverty, crime and unemployment. Bernhard Langer received that assurance at the Masters Club dinner Tuesday night with Chairman Fred Ridley. “But the issue is a lot larger than Augusta National and the Masters.”He was only certain that it would not change for the next Masters. And it wasn't in 1976, when Masters Chairman Fred Ridley stayed there for the first time. In fact, Masters Chairman Fred Ridley said it was decided before the pandemic forced the Masters to be postponed in April.

So much else has changed at Augusta National this week, when the first fall Masters will be held without many of the traditions that make it a tradition unlike any other. Another tradition diminished without fans: golfers trying to skip their shots across the surface of the pond in front of the 16th green. “We do think Butler Cabin is something that is really, not only part of the history, but emblematic of what the Masters is all about, giving the champion the green jacket,” Ridley said. “So we will be in Butler Cabin. The fall date also messed with the Masters' spot on the sports schedule.

It's November, and I think everybody just has to embrace that we're here and we're playing and that's a great thing." In some respects, this Masters is a celebration of what golf has done and a sendoff the sport has never had. For many, it signaled the start of golf season, whether that meant playing or watching. “All the Masters I've watched over the years in Ireland, the golfing season started normally the weekend of the Masters,” British Open champion Shane Lowry said. “I think when The Open Championship was canceled, I had serious doubts we'd play a Masters this year in 2020,” McIlroy said.

Lee Elder talks to the media at the Masters golf tournament Monday, Nov. 9, 2020, in Augusta, Ga. Fred Ridley, Chairman of Augusta National Golf Club, announced today that Lee Elder, the first Black man to compete in the Masters Tournament 45 years ago, will be honored by establishing scholarships in his name and inviting him to be an Honorary Starter for the 2021 Masters. (AP Photo/Chris Carlson)

The Masters for some two decades has provided scholarship money for Paine College, a private, historically Black college in Augusta. The Lee Elder Scholarship will be endowed for one man and one woman on the golf team. “That is one thing that’s going to be significant to me, because 1975 was just an ordinary shot playing a golf tournament, even though it was the Masters,” Elder said. Never forget.”The connection to Paine College goes beyond it being an HBCU. He said Augusta National would pay for everything.

ESPN's College GameDay is in. Augusta National announced Tuesday, Oct. 27, 2020, more changes to a Masters tournament that will be unlike any of the previous 83. ESPN's “College GameDay” is in. Augusta National announced Tuesday more changes to a Masters tournament that will be unlike any of the previous 83. The most notable was in 2017 when “College GameDay” was held in Times Square.

After remaining silent for more than a week, Augusta National Golf Club announced on Friday morning that the Masters, which was scheduled to begin on April 9, will be postponed indefinitely due to coronavirus fears. Statement from Chairman Ridley: "Considering the latest information and expert analysis, we have decided at this time to postpone @TheMasters, @anwagolf and @DriveChipPutt National Finals." Full details at https://t.co/FX2AN1MLsY pic.twitter.com/Z2DjS5TYdG The Masters (@TheMasters) March 13, 2020The safety, health and well-being of everyone is our top priority at Augusta National Golf Club, Ridley said in a statement at that time. Its unfortunate for the PGA Tour and the Masters.Kevin Kisner, who grew up in Aiken, S.C., near Augusta, wasnt surprised by ANGCs decision. Its as simple as that.We recognize this decision will affect many people, including our loyal patrons, Ridley said in his statement.

A "Play Suspended" sign is seen on the leaderboard during a practice round prior to the Masters at Augusta National Golf Club on April 09, 2019 in Augusta, Georgia. The 2020 Masters golf tournament has been postponed due to the coronavirus outbreak, Augusta National Golf Club chairman Fred Ridley announced on Friday. CBS, which broadcasts the Masters, said it supports the decision to postpone the tournament. "We are fully supportive of Augusta National's decision to postpone this year's Masters Tournament," a CBS spokesperson said in a statement. "We'll continue to work closely with our partners at Augusta National as we prioritize the health and well-being of everyone involved."

Now, the Masters Tournament has been postponed, the chairman of the Augusta National Golf Club announced on Friday. "Considering the latest information and expert analysis, we have decided at this time to postpone the Masters Tournament, the Augusta National Women's Amateur and the Drive, Chip and Putt National Finals," Fred Ridley said in a statement. "Unfortunately, the ever-increasing risks associated with the widespread Coronavirus COVID-19 have led us to a decision that undoubtedly will be disappointing to many, although I am confident is appropriate under these unique circumstances," he said. Get Breaking News Delivered to Your InboxRidley said the Masters will now take place "at some later date." Officials also announced on Friday that the Boston Marathon has been postponed, moved from April 20 to September 14.