Tuesday at The Masters - added B&W pics

[exposinglife]

I had a chance to go on Tuesday. My father got tickets through their lottery system and four of us went. Here is a (warning: large) gallery of pictures. Just give it a minute to load and enjoy! All were shot with the 18-200 VR.

On a side note, you should have seen the glass there...and it wasn't the normal photographers. I saw guys with kids that were toting 400mm and 500mm primes around.

 

[eng45ine]

I am very envious, I would really enjoy shooting the Masters someday.

 

[Frits]

Awesome experience I'm sure Dave, thanks for posting the gallery - nice!

 

[Aqualung]

very nice Dave, what a great experience....nice to see they're keeping the sandwich prices reasonable :wink:

 

[exposinglife]

very nice Dave, what a great experience....nice to see they're keeping the sandwich prices reasonable :wink:

The running joke is that The Masters is the only recession-proof place right now. I had a nice lunch for $4.00 which includes an extra .50 for a collectible cup. Not bad at all.

 

[McQ]

Nice. Wish I could be there too. Love the pic of Ernie Els and Gary Player. Huge difference in size there! But both of them can drive the ball a mile. And Player is like a freak of nature. That guy will be playing when he's 100!

Who's the poor guy plunking his shot into the water five yards in front of him? LOL!

Someday I'm going to make good on my big talk and turn my back yard into the 12th Green at Augusta. I think it's the most beautiful hole in golf.

Great shots and thank you for sharing them with us!

 

[Rich Gibson]

Excellent gallery. What's with the food prices? They're so low. Don't they know this is an opportunity to make tons of money selling food at 5x its normal cost. Sandwiches for $1.50? Unheard of in this day when everyone seems to be obsessed with MONEY.

Nice job capturing what's going on.

 

[mike mac]

Sweet the #1 sports event of the year a dream to even watch live let alone shoot.. one may dream

 

[exposinglife]

Who's the poor guy plunking his shot into the water five yards in front of him? LOL!

It's a tradition during the practice round that everyone try to skip the ball to the green on 16. The player (Ross Fisher) in the gallery actually nearly holed the shot! It ended up a few feet away.

Excellent gallery. What's with the food prices? They're so low. Don't they know this is an opportunity to make tons of money selling food at 5x its normal cost. Sandwiches for $1.50? Unheard of in this day when everyone seems to be obsessed with MONEY.

Augusta National has kept prices that low intentionally. Spectators (or Patrons as they call them at The Masters) only have to worry about watching golf, nothing else. Parking is free too.

It's amazing the money they are throwing away but they make so much on TV and the few sponsors they use that they pass that on to the customers at the course. They also don't over-sell the tickets during the rounds. The waiting list is miles long and most tickets are passed down through wills.

 

[Carole]

Excellent gallery. What's with the food prices? They're so low. Don't they know this is an opportunity to make tons of money selling food at 5x its normal cost. Sandwiches for $1.50? Unheard of in this day when everyone seems to be obsessed with MONEY.

Nice job capturing what's going on.

I noticed that too, Rich. I used to live in NYC and the prices for food at the US Open (tennis) were insane! We'd sneak stuff in.

Great shots, Dave! Looks like you had a super time

Carole

 

[jobaci]

Thanks Dave, enjoyed all the pics. Imagine Tiger and Norman in the final group.

 

[Rich Gibson]

I noticed that too, Rich. I used to live in NYC and the prices for food at the US Open (tennis) were insane! We'd sneak stuff in.

Great shots, Dave! Looks like you had a super time

Carole

Heck, I took my grand kids to the museum in downtown DC. We ate outside to save money and each hot dog was $2.00, and $2.00 for a soda and $1.50 for a bag of chips. It's great that they didn't soak you at the event.

 

[gladjo]

Great pics. How'd you get a DSLR in there?

 

[zepplinrox]

I AM SO JEALOUS!! Yes I meant this to be in all caps...:wink:!

 

[Fallys]

DSLR's are okay to take in for non-media for the Monday - Wednesday sessions I believe. Once the tournament started, I think it's only people with media credentials that get in.

I would imagine that the prices of the food and drink is so cheap because it's about $2k-$2.5k for the week.

Scott

 

[NewBert]

Great Shots. I have tix for the last practice round at this year's US Open in June (Bethpage Black), and will be shooting with my 70-300VR. I also have tix for Round 1 of the actual tournament, but no cameras are allowed during the tournament without credentials.

Not that this equates exactly -- but how large were the crowds (gallery, err..."number of patrons" :smile compared to an actual tournament round? Did you have to work to get a good vantage point for your shots? Or did you pretty much have free reign?

Thanks.

 

[Rich Gibson]

DSLR's are okay to take in for non-media for the Monday - Wednesday sessions I believe. Once the tournament started, I think it's only people with media credentials that get in....Scott

A perfect call for a D300 with a 70-300VR. :wink:

 

[exposinglife]

Great Shots. I have tix for the last practice round at this year's US Open in June (Bethpage Black), and will be shooting with my 70-300VR. I also have tix for Round 1 of the actual tournament, but no cameras are allowed during the tournament without credentials.

Not that this equates exactly -- but how large were the crowds (gallery, err..."number of patrons" :smile compared to an actual tournament round? Did you have to work to get a good vantage point for your shots? Or did you pretty much have free reign?

Thanks.

I went to the US Open a few years back at Pinehurst. The crowds at Augusta were a bit more tame. Of course it was very cool and windy Tuesday so that held some people back. The afternoon was a bit crazier but it was easy enough to be patient and get a decent vantage point. I wouldn't exactly call it free reign. :smile:

Enjoy it. I wish I could have gone to a regular round at The Masters. It's a bit different when you're not toting the DSLR around and you are just watching golf...it's a bit less stressful actually.

 

[sjlarue]

Cheep food and Fisher getting wet. Great set of pics.

 

[kombi1]

I wish I had the chance to attend and shoot.