Dispatch from Augusta: Notes from the fringes of the Masters
Yahoo Sports is at Augusta National all week for The Masters. Here's the seen-and-heard chip shots that don't add up to full articles. Got a question or request? Hit us up at jay.busbee@yahoo.com. And now, we swing away...
Friday, 2:38 p.m.
Steve Spurrier is in the house ... or on the course, as the case may be. He was wearing a South Carolina visor, which made it relatively easy to spot him.
Friday, 10:50 a.m.
Jack Nicklaus recorded an ace at the Par 3 tournament on Wednesday. The next day, he revealed via his Facebook page the gifts that Jack gave grandson Stevie for caddying. Sweet haul here:
Wednesday afternoon, 4:51 p.m.
This man has so many more Masters cups than you:
The gentleman, who was scavenging in every trash can he passed, didn't give his name, but said he uses the cups as bargaining chips at his home club in Canada. "They're good as gold," he said. "I use them for all kinds of favors."
Tuesday afternoon, 2:53 p.m.
Time for some of that fine Georgia weather: rain that feels like you're getting a pool thrown at you, followed by humidity like you've wrapped a warm bath towel around your face. Only a few golfers are still on the course; those that are, are in full enjoy-the-moment mode, taking multiple shots and laughing with patrons. Still another 36 hours before things get serious.
Tuesday afternoon, 1:00 p.m
Tiger Woods speaks. Here's what he said and what it might mean for his chances this week.
Tuesday afternoon, 12:18 p.m
Down in the trees on the right side of hole no. 10, dozens of patrons try to pinpoint the spot where Bubba Watson pulled off one of the most amazing shots in golf history en route to winning his first green jacket in 2012: the looping, twisting wedge from deep in the trees. There's no plaque marking the spot. If only the patrons could pull out their cell phones to watch the video. Alas.
Bubba, meanwhile, was dealing with another self-inflicted catastrophe: the fact that he's deemed one of the most unlikable golfers on the PGA Tour.
Tuesday morning, 10:12 a.m.
Right outside one of Augusta National's walk-in gates stands a man loudly proclaiming what he believes to be the Gospel of Jesus Christ. (He's one of many who will try to convert the masses at Augusta.) This man fervently, and loudly, preaches that the devotion which we are showing this earthly paradise could be better spent on something more celestial and eternal.
The crossing guard standing five paces away mutters, "I've been listening to this for two hours. I don't know whether to choke him or myself."
Tuesday morning, 7:07 a.m.
If you're driving from the Atlanta airport to Augusta, the first exit outside Atlanta's perimeter to feature a Chick-Fil-A is Turner Hill Road, Exit 75. And if you were to take this exit and visit this Chick-Fil-A, or really any Chick-Fil-A along Interstate 20, at any time during the early hours of Masters week, you'd likely see a scene similar to this one: more than a dozen early-to-late-middle-aged white dudes (including your humble author), all sporting golf shirts and pressed shorts, all standing in line for those sweet, sweet Chick-Fil-A biscuits.
This particular morning, one of the aforementioned array appears a bit mystified by the general process of Chick-Fil-A. Specifically, this gentleman is highly irritated that he cannot get lunch items at 7 in the morning. He's also apparently flummoxed by the idea that nuggets are not a la carte, and indeed can only be purchased in multiples of 6. He is making his displeasure known in a way highly unnecessary for the early-morning hour.
And golf fans wonder why the rest of the world hates them.
Tuesday morning, 6:30 a.m.
Like all great stories — "Gone With The Wind," "The Walking Dead" — our Masters saga begins with a drive from Atlanta. Join us, won't you?
____
Preview the Masters with Yahoo Sports' Grandstanding podcast:
Grandstanding: A Yahoo Sports podcast
Subscribe via iTunes & Leave A Review
____
Jay Busbee is a writer for Yahoo Sports. Contact him at jay.busbee@yahoo.com or find him on Twitter.
And keep up with Jay over on Facebook, too.
