Ben Hogan was the first to specifically prepare for the Masters Tournament. He’d hunker down in South Florida for a month and hone his game at Seminole Golf Club.
A generation later, Jack Nicklaus invented the practice of building a tournament schedule that best prepared him for each of the four majors. Tiger Woods read his book.
Fans and observers — at least the true lovers of major championship golf — often do their own kind of prep in the days leading up to Augusta.
They scan the entry list, compare with recent results, and ready themselves to draft the best roster possible for the office pool.
Or, lacking a financial interest, they dive back into a book or two of Masters history, reminding themselves of what Gene Sarazen did and what Roberto De Vicenzo didn’t do.
Either strategically (the gambler) or romantically (most others), the serious fan and onlooker prepares in some fashion.
This guy, though not necessarily for any type of Masters run-up, went to a LIV Golf tournament. Live and let LIV, they say.
Ian Poulter of the Majesticks shakes hands on his way to the seventh tee during the first round of a LIV Golf event at Orange County National. Mandatory Credit: Reinhold Matay-USA TODAY Sports
LIV in Orlando
Last weekend, the LIV folks were in Orlando to debut their Friday-through-Sunday brand of golf at Orange County National. The weather was nice and, on paper, it was just an hour away. On paper an hour, on the asphalt of today’s I-4 through Central Florida, another story. And once there, public parking was in a field of bush-hogged roots, soft sand and an occasional cactus plant.
“Don’t let the logistical failings of the Ops Team cloud your judgment of the day ahead,” became a quiet rallying cry modern customers reluctantly use now and then.
Not your ideal parking situation.
Once through the gates — hell, even before you’re through the gates — differences between this and the entire history of tournament golf begin sounding off. The music isn’t overly loud, but plenty loud, and in keeping with the theme of a sports-world disruptor, it comes from that clubby, sometimes-techno, in-your-face catalog of sound designed to get the blood flowing.
It does, by the way.
An interactive fan village near the clubhouse, along with those omnipresent food trucks, shaded sitting areas, and nearby practice areas filled with competitors, keep everyone occupied in the hour or two leading to the 1:15 p.m. shotgun start.
Yes, shotgun…
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