Augusta reverses past champions age limit at Masters
IN: News | US PGA | US Masters (2003) | General | 01 Apr 2003
Hootie Johnson, Chairman of Augusta National Golf Club and the Masters Tournament, announced today that the lifetime exemption for past champions will remain a Masters qualification. In 2004 the qualification would have changed for a past winner to end his competitive Masters career at age 65 and having played a minimum of 10 sanctioned events during the prior year.
"After discussions with Arnold Palmer and Jack Nicklaus, the Club has decided not to implement the past champions qualification change next year," Johnson said. "Arnold, Jack and I agree that past winners should be able to play as long as they'd like, so long as they feel they remain competitive. We will count on our champions to know when their playing careers at the Masters have come to an end."
The tradition of inviting past champions to play only as long as they are competitive, dates back to a letter Cliff Roberts wrote in 1970 to Ben Hogan. In the letter Roberts wrote:
"While the right of each Masters Champion to play in the tournament should be preserved, I am wondering if we could not somehow get the word around among the group that anyone who no longer seriously tries to play tournament golf should not play at Augusta.... Byron ... no longer plays. Now you have adopted [this] same policy. There are several more ... who should adopt ... the same policy."
In a subsequent letter to the champions, Roberts went on to stress the importance of playing two rounds and trying to make the cut.
"I am comfortable that the champions will abide by the spirit and intent of the lifetime exemption established by Bobby Jones and Cliff Roberts," Johnson said. "The Masters is, after all, a competition and I think in the future the champions will play in the Tournament only as long as they feel they are competitive. After that, I would hope they would play the Par 3 Contest, attend the Champions dinner, and remain an integral part of the Tournament for the rest of their lives."
Source - US Masters
