Augusta National: World's Best Golf Course

Augusta, Georgia is a southern retreat. It's enriched with fertile ground where the grass is as green as any emerald stone, and the magnolia trees tower over the mansions of Forest Hill.

Augusta is home away from home. It's an experience like no other. With a touch of class and southern hospitality to boot, it is no wonder that Augusta remains a favorite amongst tourists.

The city itself is average in size, but still maintains the small town atmosphere that it was built upon so many years ago. Augusta has three notable attractions: the Augusta Greenjackets (double AA minor league team owned by Cal Ripken), the Augusta Linx (A professional hockey team), and of course, the Augusta National.

The Augusta National is the city's main attraction, and the excitement only lasts a week. But what a week it is!

Literally over night, a small city transforms into a major metropolis. Everywhere you look there's people from all over the world crowding the streets. The city turns into a mini Las Vegas with countless parties, overflowing restaurants, and bumper to bumper traffic. It's absolute madness and all for the game of golf!

If you ever have the opportunity, you absolutely must visit Augusta in the first week of April and watch the best golf tournament on Earth! You never know, you may run into your favorite golfer such as Tiger Woods or KJ Choi.

"If there's a golf course in heaven, I hope it's like Augusta National. I just don't want an early tee time." ~ Gary Player

The Augusta National, better known as the Masters, is arguably the best golf course in the world. I've heard that from tee to green the golf course plays like any other course. However, once the golfer steps onto the green, it's a different story altogether. The greens are blazing fast as if you were putting on glass. It's truly amazing.

Unfortunately, being a spectator at the Augusta National is harder than one may think. I've lived in Augusta for over ten years, and I've only seen the golf course once. I'm here to tell you, if you are willing to pay, the ticket is worth the price of admission.

(As I type, I'm closing my eyes and I'm thinking back on the experience. Let's see if I can paint you the picture through my own eyes.) Imagine with me if you will...I'm passing through the gates, past all the vendors, past the towering green bleachers, and then like a movie the course suddenly appears.

I'm...speechless...transformed into a different world, a different dimension. I can't believe that I live literally 10 minutes away! The fairway is the finest, greenest grass I've ever laid eyes on. I take off my shoes to feel the green rough beneath my feet...it's smooth and more comfortable than any living room carpet.

I look over to my right and I see the 13th green about 100 yards away. It's beyond beautiful. God would be envious of such a vision, a masterpiece. Flawless in it's design, I can see the thoroughly raked sand traps behind the green. It's absolute perfection.

As I walk hole to hole, I notice all the little details that make the course great. From the TV camera placements to the pine needles out in no man's land, everything appears to be perfectly placed.

Finally, there's the players. I've never seen a famous golfer before and here they all were, practicing for the world's grandest stage, the Augusta Masters.

Finally I see him...you know the name. You may hate him, you may love him, or you may have went to bed with him, but you most certainly know the name...Tiger Woods. As he passes, a hush goes over the crowd and everyone is in awe, anticipating his next shot, his next movement...

It's a heck of an experience. One that you will only see if you visit the Augusta National!