It's no secret the Masters holds its fans, sorry, patrons to a strict set of rules. I once was told by security to sit up more when I had the audacity to lean back on my elbows for a minute to watch the action on the sixth hole's hill. I saw another lady snapped at for slipping her sandals off and I saw a couple guys quickly escorted off the grounds for running. But this year, it seems as if the tournament has taken its spectator guidelines to another level.
RELATED: Augusta National's unwritten rules
According to Bunkered, Augusta National security have been handed a sheet of phrases that fans are prohibited from shouting out. One notable inclusion? Bud Light's “dilly dilly” cheer that has popped up everywhere in the past year, from Super Bowl commercials to Ben Roethlisberger play calls to Vegas sportsbooks. Say what you will about the phrase, but it has proved to be a brilliant marketing tool for the beverage giant. And Bud Light's response to this supposed ..

AUGUSTA, Ga. (AP) The recovery from the back injury took a lot longer than he imagined, longer than the sting of having to miss the Masters.

Dustin Johnson, with a history of misfortune in the majors, has a remarkable knack of moving forward.

If only everyone would quit reminding him.

Article continues below …

”I get asked about it every day out here on the range or walking down the fairway,” Johnson said. ”So I’m reminded all the time.”

The back injury getting most of the attention at this year’s Masters belongs to Tiger Woods, and for good reason. It was far more severe, requiring four surgeries over four years, the last one fusion in the lumbar area. More than keeping Woods from playing Augusta National three of the last four years, he hardly played at all.

Johnson’s injury was a freak accident at the worst time.

He had won his last three tournaments against three of the strongest fields of the year, which not only elevated him to No. 1 in the world, it made him the biggest..

There is no dinner more exclusive than the Champions Dinner at Augusta National, an evening drenched in so much swagger, they should bottle it and sell it on a Golf Channel infomercial.
So esteemed is this group, it's almost a shame they let us mere mortals peek in by posting a picture on Instagram. But they do, and here it is:
LoadingView on Instagram
Oh to to be a fly on the wall at such a gathering. The stories! The knowledge! The awkward small talk while trying not to bring up that questionable drop from 30 years ago! What exactly did the assembled green jacket winners discuss while dining on Sergio Garcia's choice of Spanish-themed lobster rice? We can't say for sure. But we can draw some conclusions based on the photographic evidence.
Danny Willett: Obscured by history . . . and Fuzzy Zoeller's head.
FacebookPinterestTiger Woods and Mark O'Meara: BFFs again
FacebookPinterestRelated: Upgrade your game this season with Golf Digest All Access
Phil Mickelson:..

AUGUSTA, Ga. (AP) Rory McIlroy paused under a towering Georgia pine just off the 14th green, mimicking a swing and going over some of the finer points of Augusta National with practice partner Ian Woosnam.

Good thinking.

Woosnam, after all, has one of those coveted green jackets.

Article continues below …

McIlroy needs one to join a very exclusive club.

”You have to embrace and relish the opportunity that is put in front of you,” he said, ”and go out and grab it.”

Funny thing, it looked like the Masters would be the first major championship of McIlroy’s career. In 2011, riding the hype as the game’s brightest new star, he led after each of the first three rounds and was still out front making the turn Sunday.

Then, in one of the greatest collapses in major championship history, he played the final nine holes at 7 over to shoot 80 .

At the time, it felt like his world had collapsed.

Looking back, he considers it a turning point in his career.

”I feel like it made me a better..

AUGUSTA, Ga. (AP) The power off the tee and the sharpness with his short game made him look like the Tiger Woods of old. The smile on his face and the company he kept Tuesday at the Masters – a practice round with Phil Mickelson – suggested someone entirely different.

Woods and Mickelson had not played together at Augusta National since 2009, and even then it wasn’t by choice. They were paired in the final round, and while neither won the green jacket, Lefty shot 67 and got him by one shot.

This time they were partners, and it wasn’t a fair fight against Fred Couples and Thomas Pieters.

Article continues below …

Never mind that Mickelson hit his opening tee shot at No. 10 behind a magnolia tree. Unlike that failed foursomes match they played at Oakland Hills in the 2004 Ryder Cup, Mickelson had to play the next shot, too.

The two loudest roars that shattered the morning calm came from Woods making eagle on the two par 5s at No. 13 and No. 15.

”I made a few birdies in there,” Mi..

AUGUSTA, Ga. (AP) They’re older now, no longer the 20-somethings who together helped usher golf into a new era.

The evidence of that isn’t in their golf swings, but in their appearance. When Tiger Woods takes off his hat after a round, there’s a pronounced bald spot in the back and Phil Mickelson looks, well, like a guy should look as he approaches the half century mark in life.

In most other sports they wouldn’t contenders. In most other sports they wouldn’t even be playing.

Article continues below …

But here at the Masters, against a field loaded with young talent, they’re among the favorites.

Not just of the fans, who enjoyed the unlikely pairing of Mickelson and Woods in a rare practice round together on Tuesday. Oddsmakers in Vegas think both have a good shot at donning the traditional green jacket on Sunday, and if it’s Mickelson he would be the oldest Masters champion ever.

A Masters for the ages? How about one for the aged?

”We’re at the tail end of our careers, we bot..

An icon of golf instruction for more than four decades, David Leadbetter has outlined the essential components of an effective golf swing. With these six video lessons, you'll improve your consistency and get on the path to a better game.

With Golf Digest’s most ambitious video series to date, you’ll learn the keys to hitting the 37 basic shots in golf.

AUGUSTA, Ga. (AP) Shubhankar Sharma got his first glimpse of childhood icon Tiger Woods four years ago at the Delhi Golf Club.

Sharma, his father and several friends were among the thousands crammed throughout the tight course to watch Woods play an exhibition round.

”We were pretty much running from one green to another,” Sharma said. ”It was a great thing. Tiger has been a big inspiration not only to me but to a lot of kids back home, so it was just great to watch him play in person and got to learn a lot.”

Article continues below …

Sharma expects to top that this week at Augusta National.

The 21-year-old from India, a rising star on the European Tour, is making his Masters debut and has his sights set on meeting Woods.

He got sort of close on Tuesday.

”I saw his bag outside the clubhouse,” Sharma said with a smile.

Sharma hopes to really cross paths with Woods before play begins Thursday.

”Tiger has a different aura about him and just the player that he is and how he domi..

TheaDesignA 16-year-old allegedly stole a car, led police on a chase through a golf course, and sang the “Cops” theme song when he was finally caught. Score one for the “TV is ruining this country's youth!” crowd.
RELATED: More weird golf news
According to northjersey.com, all of this happened during Saturday's early morning hours in Haworth, N.J. The unnamed Newark teen, who drove through White Beeches Country Club, faces a slew of charges from resisting arrest to burglary, plus he received 10 motor vehicle summonses.
We're guessing cops didn't find him singing “Bad boys, bad boys, whatcha gonna do?” very amusing. But at least one observer was entertained.
“It was like 'Live PD' right in front of my house. It was phenomenal,” a witness told NBC.com.
But don't get any ideas, people. Watching “Cops” is fine. Being on “Cops” — unless you're wearing a uniform — isn't.
Shoot, now we've got that song stuck in our heads.
RELATED: Police car..