Heading into this year’s Masters, golf pundits and fans knew they were in for a different experience. The lack of spectators at Augusta National in Georgia signaled a new standard for major tournaments: a lack of interaction between players and the crowd.
In the past, golfers and spectators enjoyed a symbiotic relationship. Fans pull for golfers, and they double down and focus with all eyes on them. However, the 2020 US Masters, held November 12-15, managed to deliver on interesting maneuvers from golfers—as well as a record-breaking win from Dustin Johnson.
Johnson took the Masters with a score of 268, 20-under-par to take home a prize purse of over $2 million. That put him ahead of records established by other greats on the same course, like Tiger Woods and Jordan Spieth.
Now that Johnson has grabbed his first green jacket with a dominant performance, golf fans are looking forward to the RSM Classic nearby Augusta in Saint Simons Island, Georgia. Sites that offer golf betting odds for upcoming events have zeroed in on confirmed players, like Webb Simpson and Tyrrell Hatton.
Simpson finished in 4th at the Masters, while Englishman Hatton didn’t place though ranked 10th in the PGA Tour. Aside from Simpson and Hatton, pundits and fans will also be interested to see how others, like Bryson DeChambeau and newcomer Collin Morikawa, fare going forward after a rough tournament.
A Change of Pace at Augusta
After significant rain delays and the uncanny change in environment as Augusta remained close to the thousands of spectators usually there to watch the action, it was clear the 2020 Masters would be a truly unique tournament.
Typically, players struggle through the course. With the added element of rain, many thought the tournament would provide dazzling challenges. But in the end, the course saw fewer rogue balls challenge players.
Pundits point to the lack of spectators as easing the pressure for golfers who perform with thousands of eyes upon them in tense silence, surrounded by grandstands. The lack of fans also meant that more important personnel could accompany golfers, which Rory McIlroy took advantage of in order to rely on the support of his wife.
There were other intriguing movements on the course that had little to do with putting or driving a ball. For the first time in his illustrious career, Tiger Woods had a humble following of eleven people as he walked the course—though he didn’t seem to mind as he played with PGA-hopeful Andy Ogletree.
