Soaking in the Masters and visiting Augusta National

Augusta National: The only place where the men’s bathroom line is twice as long as the women’s. 

 

I had the chance to produce 5 Masters-focused shows this week and visited the course on Saturday.

 

Producing during the Masters

 

Each show this week was so exciting. It was sort of like planned breaking news. We usually had two anchors in studio who tossed to the field anchors at the top of the show. Our sports anchor would usually go on first with the latest standings. We’d then either have a package from the course or some fronted VOSOTs. The folks at the course spoke with legends and found typical patrons with amazing stories to tell.  

It’s difficult to keep in constant contact with the media in the field because Augusta National prohibits cell phones outside of the media center. We stayed in touch through hourly emails and iNews top lines.

The shows were fun and having the studio anchors and folks at the course talk with each other was a huge advantage that we often don’t get.

I’m very proud of the work I did this week and if the Masters didn’t have strict rules on course video online, I would share my finished work with you.

 

Enjoying Augusta National

As I walked in on Saturday afternoon, I felt like I was walking into an amusement park. Guards checked my purse to ensure I left my cell phone and camera in the car. My badge was checked multiple times before I got a good look at the enormous, breathtaking landscape of the course.

Once I was in, it felt as though I walked into another dimension. This place couldn’t be 10 minutes away from where I sleep every night.

The course was filled with patrons, champions, media and amazing scenery. I was lucky enough to have the best tour guide around; my friend from the station was taking photos throughout the day. She was able to lead me to all of the right holes at the perfect time and fill me in on knowledge about the course and about the sport in general.

We walked nearly the entire course and chatted with people from around the world. I’m not a golf expert, but I knew to gaze with my jaw open at the folks in green jackets. Multiple club members and champion contenders stood just feet away from me.  

I’m very, very thankful for this week.

If you love golf, beautiful scenery and a great atmosphere, visit Augusta National. You can stay at my place if you swear to bring me back a pimento cheese sandwich.