So you’ve finally done it.
After years of lottery entries, months of anticipation and at least several sleepless hours, you’ve made it to the morning of your first visit to the Masters.
I know how you feel. As someone who spent the balance of my life prior to graduating college believing with the full brunt of my being that I would never make it to Augusta National, I can vividly recall the combination of shock, awe, excitement and terror that joined my first visit to Augusta National back in 2021.
In those pandemic days, I had to pass a Covid test in order to make it inside the property gates. I spent days having nightmares about flying down to Augusta only to fail the test, ending my Masters dreams at the precipice of the tournament gates.
Thankfully, that never happened. I passed my test and covered all four rounds of Hideki Matsuyama’s Masters win. Then I came back the next year and did it again. And the next year. And then, one day, I looked up to find I had attended five Masters, and would soon be en route to Augusta for my sixth. I was suddenly such an experienced tournament attendee that friends and family referred to me for my expertise on building a day on site, and my editors tasked me with charting out the dream itinerary for a fan attending for the first time. That’s what I’ve done below, in as painstaking detail as I can muster.
Your dream Masters itinerary
Before your trip…
Flights: Your options for getting here are expansive and yet also pretty bleak. The Augusta airport will be outrageously expensive during tournament week. The Columbia airport has few direct flights. And the Atlanta airport is one of the worst places in the civilized world. The Charlotte airport is … actually pretty alright on all fronts.
If you’re trying to get down there on a budget, hold your nose and book the cheapest flight into the major hubs at ATL or CLT. If money is no object, fly into Columbia or Augusta. And if money is really no object, fly private. In all cases, get to town with some wiggle room on the night before you plan to attend — the only true nightmare scenario is losing some time on site in the name of a flight delay.
Hotels: By tournament week, your options for staying in town are … also probably bleak. Hotels book out months upon months in advance of tournament week, and the few remaining places with rooms are either priced competitively to the Eras Tour or — and I’m saying this charitably — not the kind of spots you’d enjoy viewing under a blacklight. Check out Airbnb, which often has no shortage of last-second options from locals looking to take advantage of a sweet, sweet tax break. Aiken, S.C., is another town around 30 minutes away with lots of options, and North Augusta (located just across the river, also in South Carolina) is another place with more housing inventory. If all else fails, book a hotel in Columbia and drive in.
Supplies: Golf attire — whatever that means to you! But also bring a wallet with a credit card and your driver’s license, and a light jacket should the weather turn on its head at some point during the day. Also: Good shoes!!! The walk is hilly (as you’ve probably heard), and the easiest way to ruin your day is to blister before you’ve turned for the “second nine.” Don’t do it!
Do I need a chair or golf umbrella? Nope! There are an ungodly number of green Masters folding chairs on site at Augusta National, and you can sit in any of ’em so long as the owner isn’t there first. There are also no shortage of grandstands and picnic tables, which are also free. And should none of those options suffice, nobody’s ever gone wrong popping a squat on the immaculately manicured turf.
Can I bring a camera? Yes!! But only if it’s a practice round day. And if it is a practice round day, ensure you remember your camera before you leave home. From my own (tortured) experience, most stores within a 15-mile radius of Augusta are sold clean out of digital cameras by the time the gates open on Monday morning.
6:15 a.m.: Wakeup!
Look, nobody’s less of a morning person than me, but Augusta National is magic in the morning dew — and even more so for the first-time visitor. Plus you’ve waited your whole life for this day, you can sleep when you’re dead!
6:35 a.m.: Departures
Even if you’re staying nearby and even if you’re up before dawn, you’ll want to give yourself at least 20 minutes to get the course. Traffic flow is well managed around the tournament gates but it still gets pretty intense during tournament week.
6:55 a.m.: Arrivals
Let me be the first to break the very good news: By the time you’ve pulled into the grassy parking lots outside Augusta National, you’ve paid market price for your last item. Everything you buy from here on out will either be outrageously cheap or outright free. We’ll start that experience here, with parking, which is free. Find a spot and head for the gates.
7 a.m. sharp: Entrance!
The gates will open at 7, and that’s your cue to be amongst the hordes waiting to a get a glimpse at a (mostly) untouched Augusta National. There are two main gates to enter the property through, and though this is is purely personal preference, I’d give preferential treatment to the North Gate. The long, winding entrance brings you through the practice range and down towards the clubhouse, where you can capture the course in sequential order (as opposed to seeing the famed holes on Amen Corner before you’ve had the proper opportunity to build toward them).
7:10 a.m.: Course tour
You might be tempted to visit the Masters’ enormous merchandise center right upon arrival, and honestly, if the line is short enough, go for it! But things get jammed up pretty quickly in my experience, and your goal should be to spend as little time waiting around as you can muster.
So rather than do some shopping, take a couple of hours to take in all 18 holes on property. Start with No. 1 and finish with No. 18 — taking in every nook and cranny and crevice of Alister MacKenzie’s glorious design. Relive your favorite shots. Enjoy the tranquility of the morning. Stare up at the enormous leaderboards. Feel your state of being rise into something bordering on meditative. Feel free to stop for a coffee, some fruit and a breakfast biscuit at the concession areas near 2, 7, 8, 11, 12 and 13. Don’t rush this. It might be the best two hours you spend all day, and it is unquestionably good for the soul.
9:30 a.m.: Snack break
Once your Big Walk is finished, head over to one of the concession areas and go truly hog wild. Breakfast will still be served at this time, but you can enjoy any number of Masters-related delicacies. As the world’s foremost authority on baked goods, I can say with clarity that the Masters’ cookies belong in a tier entirely of their own. But hell, get yourself a $1.50 Pimento Cheese sandwich and try the thing out for yourself.
Before you make any big purchases here, feel free to take in the line for Masters merchandise. It might still be quiet at this hour of the morning, and if it is, pounce. If not, hold onto your credit card — rest assured, the time to go shopping will arrive.
10:30 a.m.: Up to The Tree
By this point in the morning, golfers should be arriving on the course for their practice rounds, which means it’s a terrific opportunity to take in the action by the area known as The Tree. For the uninitiated, The Tree is an enormous Live Oak that has hung over the clubhouse for each of the tournament’s 90 iterations — it is also the hub of activity for the movers and shakers of the golf world during tournament week. It is not uncommon to see celebrities milling about in these quarters, nor is it strange to see some of the most influential people in the golf world enjoying a bit of highly publicized hobnobbing.
The scene is worth it alone for a view at Augusta National’s famed clubhouse, which rests overlooking the action all week in a state of frenzied excitement. But if celeb-spotting isn’t your thing, grab a spot on the hill overlooking the first tee box and watch the golfers as they come through to start their practice rounds.
Noon: Lunch
You can get whatever you want, but you should get a chicken sandwich or a chicken salad sandwich and a bag of chips, as well as a water and a sweet treat of your choice. If your dogs are barking on account of the walk (or your eyes puffing on account of the pollen), be sure to stop by the little nook by the checkout area to consult the list of NSAIDs and allergy medications available for purchase in convenient little packs.
1 p.m.: Your favorite spot on the course
Pick a place OTHER than Amen Corner that stuck out to you during your walk. Maybe one of the holes on the “first nine,” which gets considerably less airtime but features an astonishing array of great golf holes, or one of the iconic areas on the closing stretch, like the site of the old Eisenhower Tree on 17 or the elevator shaft tee shot on 18.
Personally speaking, my choice for this would be the side of 15 green, where you can watch golfers attempt the most heroic shot at Augusta National (a high, arcing long-iron over the pond to give a chance at eagle) and even catch a glimpse of the excitement happening on 16, where patrons are invariably screaming at golfers to skip balls across the lake.
3 p.m.: Amen Corner (and a VERY special treat)
If you’ve read this far into the story, dear reader, I am happy to divulge my greatest Augusta National secret.
You can’t actually spend a day at Augusta National without spending a prolific amount of time in Amen Corner, the glorious stretch of “second nine” holes that frames the golf tournament every year. And you can’t properly take in Amen Corner until you’ve enjoyed it via what I’m now patenting as the “James Colgan Method.”
What is the James Colgan Method? I’m glad you asked! Stop off at the concession area behind 12 tee box and bring a checklist of two critical items: 1. a Georgia Peach Ice Cream Sandwich and 2. an alcoholic beverage of your choosing (I personally prefer the Masters’ specific beer named the Crow’s Nest).
Purchase both items, grab a seat on the sunny shade of grass parked next to the 12th tee box or 13th green, and watch as the very best golfers in the world play the most famous holes in golf while enjoy the two greatest delicacies in all of golf. If you’re there, grab a photo. You’ll want the memory.
You might be noticing that my itinerary has you circling in on 200 grams of sugar by the time the afternoon rolls around. Repeat after me: Calories don’t count in Golf Heaven.
5 p.m.: Merch!
At long last, you’ve made it to the most stressful part of your day: Merchandise. Now, I’ll admit freely that the selection later in the day can be a little bit dodgy. But nobody on your shopping list is going to care much about the color so long as you’ve sourced something for them with the iconic map-and-flag logo stitched into it.
I’ll tell you now that it’s best to keep a written list of your merchandise needs (critically: include sizing!!!) before you walk inside the tournament gates. Have backup options if your main options are sold out. Have a number you’re comfortable spending (and also another, much larger number you’re comfortable justifying to your potentially concerned loved ones). Stick to your plan, and keep your head down.
You’ll emerge the hero of your friends and family, and also likely several hundred dollars lighter. If you’ve done it right, the lines should be pretty minimal, and you won’t have to spend all afternoon schlepping your stuff around the golf course (a win-win!).
6 p.m.: Departure
Stop and smell the azaleas as you begin the long walk back out to the parking lot, and try to pause for at least a moment of gratitude as you leave. The scary thing about walking out of Augusta National is that you never know when you’ll be back, but if you’ve done it right, you’ll end your day without any regret — and with plenty of green jacket memories to fill the rest of your days.
