Trevor Immelman 2008 Master's Tournament Champion

Professional golfers prepare everyday of their lives for this day! The azaleas were in bloom and the sun was shining bright and the wind was blowing around 15 mph with gusts up to 30 mph.

Trevor Immelman has won the 2008 Master's Golf Tournament!



Immelman was born in Cape Town, South Africa. He took up golf at the age of five. He won the U.S. Amateur Public Links in 1998. He was born on December 16, 1979.


The idea for Augusta National was first thought by Bobby Jones, who had the desire to build a golf course after his retirement from the game. He sought advice from Clifford Roberts, who later became the Chairman of the club, and they both came across a piece of land in Augusta, Georgia. Jones said of the property:

"Perfect! And to think this ground has been lying here all these years waiting for someone to come along and lay a golf course upon it."

Jones hired Alister MacKenzie to design the course, which began in 1931. The course formally opened in 1933. Tragically, MacKenzie died before the first Masters Tournament began.


From 1934 to 2008 there were only three years that the Master's Golf Tournament was not played. 1943, 1944 and 1945 due the World War II. To assist the war effort, cattle and turkeys were raised on the Augusta National grounds.

Tradition

In addition to a cash award, the winner of the tournament is presented with a distinctive green jacket, awarded since 1949, and highly coveted among professional golfers. The green sport coat is actually the official attire worn by members of Augusta National while on the club grounds; each Masters winner becomes an honorary member of the club. Winners keep their jacket for the first year after their first victory, then return it to the club to wear whenever they visit.

What hot dogs are to baseball, the Pimento Cheese sandwich is to the Masters’ at Augusta. There are eight types of sandwiches sold at the Master’s but the Pimento Cheese is the one to get. Although the exact recipe is a secret akin to the secret formula for Coke, it’s made of pimento cheese and smeared on white bread. It's simple, it's inexpensive and it's tradition.

The Master's Golf Tournament is not without controversy.

Augusta National Golf Club has about 300 members at any given time. Fees are reported to range between $250,000 and $500,000.[citation needed] Membership is strictly by invitation; there is no application process.

After much criticism of exclusive and discriminatory admissions, Augusta finally accepted a black member in 1990.

There are currently no female members of Augusta, although women are able to play the course as guests of a member. The club's lack of female membership received national attention in 2002 when Martha Burk, chairperson of the National Council of Women's Organizations, publicly challenged the club's stance.

(Much of the information in this blog was taken from Wikipedia)