PGA Tour players and caddies will have an incentive to get the COVID-19 vaccination — the Tour told them in an internal memo this week that was obtained by Golf Digest that they will no longer require weekly testing to play in events if they are vaccinated.

In the memo, players and caddies who receive their second shot from Moderna or Pfizer,...Read more

AUGUSTA, Ga. — Why the Masters is the world's greatest golf tournament:

1. Sheer beauty. Augusta National Golf Club is beautiful everywhere you look, from the white cabins to the pink azaleas, from Amen Corner to the walking path along the second fairway. It's hard to imagine a prettier setting that doesn't feature an ocean.

2. Permanence. ...Read more

Hideki Matsuyama looked as if he was fighting back tears.

He scrunched his face. He looked down. He blinked.

The question from the Japanese talk show host that elicited the involuntary physical response wasn’t about his victory at the Masters earlier Sunday, but about his first time playing in the tournament.

“I think I was able to change...Read more

AUGUSTA, Ga. -- Japan is a golf-crazy country. There are waiting lists for memberships at driving ranges, let alone the best country clubs.

It has had no shortage of worldwide stars such as World Golf Hall of Fame members Isao Aoki and Masashi "Jumbo" Ozaki, and Ozaki's brothers Naomichi "Joe" and Tateo "Jet."

There also was Shigeki Maruyama, ...Read more

AUGUSTA, Ga. — Japan’s Hideki Matsuyama secured a spot in golf history Sunday, winning the Masters and becoming the first of his countrymen to collect a major championship.

Despite three bogeys in five holes down the stretch, Matsuyama steadied himself and shot a one-over-par 73 to secure a one-stroke victory at Augusta National, a win ...Read more

AUGUST, Ga. — The media center for the Masters golf tournament is located on the northern edge of the property, an expansive, modern building with an elegant wood ceiling and a wall of windows looking across the practice range.

To reach the course, you ride in motorized green carts through what seems like the backlot of a movie studio or ...Read more

AUGUSTA, Ga. — Pretty mundane way to spend a rain delay, sitting in your car and scrolling through your cellphone. But Hideki Matsuyama needed to clear his head Saturday after hitting his worst shot of the Masters, a drive on No. 11 that peeled so far right it wound up on a grass strip on the wrong side of the trees. Mercifully, officials ...Read more

AUGUSTA, Ga. — Hideki Matsuyama first experienced the Masters Tournament as a 19-year-old amateur in 2011, thanks to an invitation extended to the winner of the Asia-Pacific Amateur.

The stocky kid with the slow backswing made the cut at the Augusta National Golf Club and was the low amateur, finishing tied for 27th at 1-under-par 287.

That ...Read more

AUGUSTA, Ga. — Cameron Smith had his streak of rounds in the 60s at Augusta National snapped in Thursday's first round with an opening 74.

He started another on Friday but his 68 admittedly left him steaming because it had so much more potential until a double-bogey at No. 15.

"Quite frustrated, actually," said the native of Brisbane, ...Read more

AUGUSTA, Ga. — Billy Horschel will always be an eternal optimist.

With a gritty, grinding 71 on Friday in the second round of the Masters Tournament, the Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla., resident made the cut at 3-over 147. Despite being 10 shots behind leader Justin Rose, Horschel believes anyone making the Masters cut has a chance, given the whacky...Read more

AUGUSTA, Ga. — The surgeon who reconstructed the right knee of Brooks Koepka three weeks ago said it’s “miraculous” that the former World No. 1-ranked golfer was able to compete in the Masters.

Earlier this year, Koepka suffered a dislocated kneecap in an unspecified “freak accident,” yet was back on the course, shooting a two-over...Read more

AUGUSTA, Ga. — Dustin Johnson won a November Masters on a soft, vulnerable golf course with a record score of 20-under. Apparently, Augusta National isn’t about to let that happen again.

Everyone seemed to get the memo, except Justin Rose.

The Englishman ripped off an eagle and seven birdies in the space of, gulp, 10 holes Thursday to ...Read more

AUGUSTA, Ga. — Justin Rose's second-nine sprint up the Masters leaderboard aside, the most entertaining round on Thursday might have been turned in by Jordan Spieth.

"Somewhat typical for me at the Masters," Spieth said, when asked to describe his 1-under 71, which left him six shots behind Rose. "Some good golf and then some fireworks at ...Read more