We think of Augusta National Golf Club as golf’s most powerful address, and the Masters as the game’s best-run, most beloved tournament. Yet a closer look at the club’s precarious beginnings shows how fortunate Augusta National and the Masters came to fizzling out altogether. As Alex Myers describes in the latest episode of Local Knowledge, the iconic event we revere today was first just a means to an end to keep a struggling club afloat.

The near demise of Augusta National

The best golf stories have multiple layers to them. In each episode, Local Knowledge dives deep into a subject golfers want to know about, whether it’s about the game they play, the competition at the highest level, or the surprising ways golf factors into larger conversations throughout society. Hosts Alex Myers, Keely Levins, Shane Ryan and Sam Weinman weave together original interviews, Golf Digest reporting, and additional elements to tell the type of compelling stories that have been a Golf Digest staple for decades.

Sports

Golf

An inside look at one of the major mistakes at Augusta National

De Vicenzo's Masters gaffe, and who was really to blame

An inside look at one of the strangest controversies in golf history

Cliff and Frank: A Bizarre Augusta Story

What is the Official World Golf Ranking? Will it stick around?

The OWGR: Past, Present, and Rocky Future

An inside look at one of the great American golf course designers

The Iron Will of Pete Dye

The story of Charlie Sifford, one of the most important people in golf history.

The near demise of Augusta National

Download our free app to listen on your phone