AUGUSTA, Ga. — More than golf’s first major championship of the year, the Masters represents unification for the sport.
This is the first time since the British Open last July that the best players, regardless of their tours, will compete against each other: same course, same tournament, same television network.
“I believe everyone agrees there’s excitement in the air this week,” Fred Ridley, the tournament’s chairman, said Wednesday. “The best players in the world are together once again.”
Still unclear at Augusta National Golf Club is for how much longer.
The Saudi-funded LIV Golf League has 13 players at the Masters, seven of them former champions who can play the tournament as long as they want. That’s down from 18 a year ago. Only nine LIV players are currently assured of being back at Augusta National next year.