The Masters by Curt Sampson

The Masters

Golf, Money, and Power in Augusta, Georgia

Curt Sampson

Random House Publishing Group · Print & ebook · March 16, 1999

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Who it’s for
A history of golf where money, power, and Southern life meet.
Genres
Golf, 20th-Century America, Sports Lives
Published
Random House Publishing Group, March 16, 1999

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About this book

The Masters golf tournament weaves a hypnotic spell. It is the toughest ticket in sports, with black-market tickets selling for $10,000 and more. Success at Augusta National breeds legends, while failure can overshadow even the most brilliant of careers. But as Curt Sampson, author of the bestselling Hogan, reveals in The Masters, a cold heart beats behind the warm antebellum façade of this famous Augusta course.

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And that heart belongs to the man who killed himself on the grounds two decades ago. Club and tournament founder Clifford Roberts, a New York stockbroker, still seems to run the place from his grave. An elusive and reclusive figure, Roberts pulled the strings that made the Masters the greatest golf tournament in the world. His story—including his relationship with presidents, power brokers, and every golf champion from Bobby Jones to Arnold Palmer to Jack Nicklaus—has never been told. Until now. The Masters is an amazing slice of history, taking us inside the presidency of Dwight D. Eisenhower, Augusta's most famous member. It is a look at how the new South coexists with the old South: the relationships between blacks and whites, between Southerners and Northerners, between rich and poor—with such characters as James Brown, the Godfather of Soul; the great boxer Beau Jack; and Frank Stranahan, the playboy golfer and the only white pro ever banned from the tournament. The Masters is a spellbinding portrait of a tournament unlike any other.

Beyond the Fairway

A history of golf where money, power, and Southern life meet.

Come here for

  • Augusta’s tournament history and the forces behind its rise
  • Golf legends alongside presidents, power brokers, and Southern culture

Expect

  • A portrait of Clifford Roberts and his influence
  • A view of the tensions between old and new South

Where it sits

Golf96%
20th-Century America43%
Sports Lives31%

Percentages are BookFrontier’s reading of the book.

Publisher categories

  • Golf
  • Sports History
  • Sports & Society
Authors
Curt Sampson
Publisher
Random House Publishing Group
Published
March 16, 1999
Format
Print & ebook
Reading lane
Golf