Chairman Fred Ridley Addresses Challenges of Hosting Women’s Professional Tournament at the Augusta National

The prospect of organizing the Women’s Masters at Augusta National stays remote as per the challenges underlined by Fred Ridley. The all-men club has already allowed women to be a part of it since 2012 and it organizes Augusta National Women’s Amateur Tournaments, but including another professional tournament is difficult given the fact that the course remains closed during summers, as per a report. 

Augusta National Chairman Fred Ridley said, “I think we’ve addressed this question in the past and there are some fundamental difficulties in that…To have another tournament of any kind would be very difficult based on our season, based on the fact that this is essentially a winter and spring golf course…It’s not open in the summer.” 

Fred Ridley added that the limited period does not allow him to hold any other tournament. “So we really have a limited period of time we could play any additional event…We need to make sure that we really respect the mystique and the magic of the Masters” 

Fred Ridley’s comments indicate that there’s the least possibility of including any other tournament given the tight schedule. Apart from this, let’s take a look at whether other men’s major tournament venues hosted women’s tournaments.

Men’s major tournament venues hosting women’s tournaments

The Los Angeles Country Club, which organizes the US Open, also arranged the US Women’s Amateur Championship in 1930. Apart from the Los Angeles Country Club, Augusta National also organizes women’s amateur events. But the other venues, like the Oak Hill Country Club, which hosts the PGA Championship, or the Hoylake, which hosts the Open Championship, don’t organize any women’s events. 

Whereas, the limited exposure of women in these courses didn’t prevent them from being a part of great courses or being a part of the majors. The AIG Women’s Open takes place at the iconic Old Course. Also, the US Women’s Open took place at the terrific Pebble Beach last year and this year it shifted to Lancaster Country Club. Added to these, the women’s circuit also has a PGA Championship but they missed out on the Masters. Thus, it’s to see whether the Masters’ organization introduces a major on a professional level for women or not. 

About the author

Suchita Chakraborty

Suchita Chakraborty is a senior golf writer at The SportsRush. She did her post-graduation at St. Xavier's University. For a year now, she has developed a riveting inclination toward golf, with Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy being her top-tier motivational figures to indulge in the sport. She even lives by the words of the Hall of Famer, "You can always become better", which impels her to excel every day. Her strong suit in golf is covering the LPGA Tour, especially the nooks and crannies of the international event, the Solheim Cup. As a pastime amusement, Suchita also engages herself in reading about golf controversies. Her favorite pick is ‘LIV and Let Die’ by Alan Shipnuck, which covers the PGA-LIV beef.

Read More