| The 2026 Masters Tournament begins today at Augusta National Golf Club. Two-time champion Scottie Scheffler enters as the favorite to become the first golfer to win three Masters in five years since Tiger Woods. Reigning winner Rory McIlroy looks to defend his title. Founded in 1934 by golfer Bobby Jones and investment banker Clifford Roberts, the Masters is one of the four major golf championships. The tournament, now in its 90th edition (skipped for three years during World War II), is held at the same course each year. It features cheap concessions (the famous pimento cheese and egg salad sandwiches cost $1.50 each), the Champions Dinner, and the awarding of the green jacket—one of the sport’s most recognizable symbols. This year’s Masters is the first in 32 years without Woods or his rival Phil Mickelson.Off the course, Augusta National has quietly built a roughly $500M real estate empire around its grounds, and its most coveted souvenir, a $50 lawn gnome introduced in 2016, now resells for hundreds. |
