Golf Magazine

“THE RITE OF SPRING” is an idiom signaling an escape from the winter months and, more poetically, an awakening. In golf circles, it’s known as the Masters. For most of my life, I assumed the term “The Rite of Spring” was millennia-old. But it’s a mere 110 and based on the ballet/orchestral piece by Vaslav Nijinsky (pliés and jetés) and Igor Stravinsky (music) first performed at the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées on May 29, 1913. Only 21 years later, another masterpiece—the Masters Tournament—would debut among Augusta, Georgia’s dogwoods, crab apples and azaleas. Despite humble beginnings, both evolved into worldwide phenomena. There’s more in common here than you think. The Nijinsky-Stravinsky Rite of Spring has 12 movements (should have been 18), and each of its homages to revival/rebirth/ renewal share affinities (below) with our…

The new forged cavity-back CB-302 irons from Miura ($350 each; miuragolf.com) come with a simple promise: Provide all golfers with legendary craftsmanship, feel and playability without producing the ballooning ballflight common to game-improvement clubs. The added playability comes courtesy of a wider sole, a variable cavity depth and a precise amount of trailing relief—a combo to whet the appetite of players seeking an iron that feels buttery yet lends a heavy dose of forgiveness on off-center strikes. And for those who like to “work” the ball? No sweat—each CB-302 generates the much-loved penetrating ballflight only a high-quality forged iron can give. And, of course, these new irons possess Miura’s trademark good looks. Available in 4-GW, the CB-302s are a successor to the popular CB-301s. Get 'em while they’re hot! Jeffrey Westbrook;…

Even after all these years, two words excite every golf fan: Tiger’s playing. This year’s Genesis Invitational didn’t need extra star power. It already had “designated” status, which meant every top Tour pro was in attendance, including three players—Scottie Scheffler, Rory Mcllroy and Jon Rahm— fighting for the title of World No. 1. But the addition of Woods to the field sent a shock wave through the Los Angeles sporting scene. Riviera Country Club was suddenly the place to be. Woods’ first stroke-play tournament since July 2022 went better than expected. After an up-and-down first two days, he made the cut on the number, thrilled the crowd with a Saturday 67 and a Sunday 73 left him T45 but encouraged. “It’s progress,” Woods said. “We’re headed in the right direction.” On Sunday, the main…

Up Close with Dylan Dethier Scottie Scheffler Last year's Masters winner and PGA Tour Player of the Year is back on fire again—and back in the public eye. But would he trade it all for pickleball? THE PLAYERS’ DINING ROOM AT RIVIERA, ONE DAY AFTER HIS ’23 WM PHOENIX OPEN WIN Dylan Dethier: By now, a lot of people know you looked up to Tiger Woods as a kid. Who else were your role models? Scottie Scheffler: I grew up at Royal Oaks [in Dallas], and there were a lot of guys there because of Randy Smith, my coach. Justin Leonard was there, Colt Knost, Anthony Kim—other guys too. Randy molded me, but there were a lot of players out there, and I learned a lot by watching. DD: Being around those guys made being a…

“GET ME SOMETHING WITH THAT LOGO ON IT." At every Masters, patron after patron piles into the Golf Shop, Augusta National Golf Club’s lavish merchandise center. Why? Because the ANGC logo is the most precious and prestigious in the game. And this is the only place you can get your hands on it. The logo—an elemental and crudely rendered 3D outline of the United States with a flagstick pegged in the vicinity of Georgia—dates back as far as the club’s existence. Though Augusta National has never thoroughly detailed the design’s history, the logo was positioned atop the very first invitations sent to players for the inaugural Masters in 1934, which was then called the Augusta National Invitational Tournament. In those early days, patches sewn onto club members’ green jackets included “A.N.G.C.” in a…

THE FIRST TIME HE ATTENDED THE MASTERS, nearly a decade ago, the renowned chef Thomas Keller did what any golf and food enthusiast would do: He wandered the grounds, eating up the atmosphere and savoring the beauty. Then he made a beeline for the concession stand. Spoiler alert: He did not order a chicken biscuit. “It’s the Masters,” Keller says. “You’ve got to go with the pimento cheese.” Just as the salmon tartare cornet is a signature for Keller, the Michelin threestar man behind Per Se, in New York, and The French Laundry, in Northern California, the pimento-cheese sandwich is a staple across large swaths of the South. But no version is more famous than the one sold at the Masters, where a spread of gooey goodness squeezed between white bread fetches a…