Can I play Augusta Country Club?
To get to play Augusta Country Club may be slightly easier than at Augusta National, but not by a lot.
The two courses are neighbours. Indeed areas of what used to be part of the course at Augusta Country Club is now land owned and used by Augusta National instead as some of the lengthening of Augusta National over the years has involved Augusta National buying plots of land off its next-fairway neighbour.
The courses also share Rae’s Creek. This creek, named after John Rae, an Irish landowner who settled in the area, originally ran for over 10 miles and flowed into the Savannah River. At Augusta National the creek flows across in front of the 12th green and at Augusta Country Club it runs across the front of the 8th green.
They also share members. It is said – and we stress ‘said’ as Augusta National does not let on who are its members – that every Augusta local who is a member of Augusta National – and there are not many, an estimated two to three dozen – is also a member of Augusta Country Club.
So be careful if you happen to meet a member of Augusta National locally and he says ‘we must have a game at my club’, it’s best to check to which club he is referring. Augusta Country Club is a fine course with a distinctive feel of Augusta National to it, as have several golf courses in Georgia but, well, its isn’t Augusta National is it. It isn’t the home of The Masters.
Augusta Country Club is a private club which predates Augusta National. At private clubs members can invite guests to play. The good news on this front is that Augusta National has only about 300 members, whereas Augusta Country Club had about 1,300. That means you are more likely, statistically, to get to know a member of the latter than the former.
The other thing that makes Augusta Country Club more accessible is that the club does permit limited reciprocal privileges to other private club members upon prior formal written introduction.
