I am 43 years old, and the only thing I ever knew about golf was that I was bad at it and Tiger was the best that there ever was at it. Nowadays, there is an entire culture surrounding the sport I never knew of, thanks to social media and my inability to play baseball any longer, due to the breakdown of my knees and my shoulder. In my attempt to find another hobby, I am discovering golf for the first time. This weekend is the biggest event of the year as The Masters is taking place at Augusta National.
Now, me being who I am, I didn’t want to just go in cold on the event. So I reached out to a few friends who are smarter than I am to get the top five things I should be paying attention to this weekend as The Masters takes place. Here are the storylines and aspects of The Masters I (and I am assuming you, too) should be paying attention to this weekend.
Justin Rose’s quest for the elusive green jacket vs Jordan Spieth’s comeback story
Any conversation about storylines surrounding a sporting event and what to watch for should absolutely involve the athletes who are competing. This year, the big storylines I am keeping my eye on are Justin Rose’s seemingly elusive quest for the green jacket. If you are new here, the winner of The Masters receives a green sport coat with the Winner’s Circle insignia on the breast pocket. Rose is in an “always the bridesmaid, never the bride” sort of situation, as he has been the runner-up three times.
Next to him is Jordan Spieth, who is looking to complete a Cinderella story comeback as he is recovering from a wrist injury that should make for some compelling television if these two are in the hunt near the end.
What the heck is Amen Corner
Amen Corner is a stretch of three holes dubbed with the name by Herbert Warren Wind in a 1958 edition of Sports Illustrated. It is largely seen as the most famous stretch in golf, and where The Masters is usually decided. It consists of the 11th (a par 4 called White Dogwood), the 12th (a par 3 called Golden Bell), and the 13th (a par 5 called Azalea).
Water features heavily as there is a pond to the left of White Dogwood, and the world-famous Rae’s Creek haunts the golfers on Golden Bell and Azalea. There hasn’t been an ace on this stretch since 1988, and that was the last of only three. The fairway of Golden Bell is also known as the final stretch of Heartbreak Highway, so there is a lot of stress even in the nicknames of these three holes. If you are just getting back from getting another beer and want to know if they are at Amen Corner, look for the iconic bridges to point the way.
The fascinating dinner tradition featuring elk in 2026
This happened last night, so if you missed the boat, here is what you missed. The Masters Club Dinner, also known as the Champions Dinner, is a tradition started by Ben Hogan in 1952. The dinner is designed and paid for by the previous year’s champion. As a sort of initiation, he is buying dinner for the rest of the former winners. Now, what made last night’s incredible? It was the most expensive dinner to date at a whopping three times the price of last year’s dinner. After Rory McIlroy took home $4.2 million last year, he should be just fine covering the tab.
The former champion also included last year’s secret weapon. “In the build-up to the Masters last year, I got this big shipment of elk, and I was eating a lot of that, and I didn’t want elk to be the main course because I didn’t know if everyone would like that. I incorporated that into the appetizers so I’m doing grilled elk sliders, which I think is fun.”
Don’t sleep on Shane Lowry and his affinity for tough courses
If you are a betting man, you may overlook someone like Shane Lowry. The last time he showed up in Augusta was in 2024, where he was tied for 43rd with a score of 8 over par. However, the four years before that, he went for a combined 11 under par with 2022 being his best year at 5 under par and tied for third place. He trained and became a pro on the notoriously difficult turf of Ireland and has finished in the top 10 four times over his last 10 appearances. Just in February, he finished a crazy 19 under par at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am. So don’t count him out; he may be the dark horse to watch this weekend.
The Masters is the only Major played at the same place every year
Predictable nostalgia centered around deep tradition seems to be the name of the game for The Masters. While the rest of the Majors are put on by the PGA of America or the USGA, Augusta National organizes its own tournament. That makes it easy for it to remain steeped in tradition and year in and year out, making it predictable for the players and a source of nostalgia for the fans. Everything spoken about above, the Green Jacket, Amen Corner, the Champion’s Dinner, all of these are made possible because golf legend Bobby Jones and Clifford Roberts designed something to stay in one place rather than be a rotating venue. This makes The Masters feel like the Super Bowl of golf, as it is the biggest event of the year.
Grab a beer (or three if that is your vibe), choose your golfer to cheer for, and settle in for an invigorating weekend as we find out who will be choosing the Champion’s Dinner in 2027.
