The Masters

Today was the start of what is widely regarded as one of the most prestigious sporting events of the year;  the Masters golf tournament at Augusta National in Georgia.  It is the first major of the golf season, and the one that Tiger Woods most wants to win every year (he has already won four of them).  This tournament has everything, and it means everything to all the players lucky enough to participate, but you'd never know that based on the TV coverage. The powers-that-be at Augusta National, the stuffy Southerners who feel that "less is more", take that cliche to a new level.  They put such a limit on TV coverage that when ESPN went live at 4 pm, Tiger, who was in the second-to-last group, was already through seven holes.  The final threesome teed off around 2 pm, giving them a 2-hour head start before ESPN came on.  For comparison, the US Open is shown starting at about 11 am each day of the tournament, allowing fans not lucky enough to attend to see all the shots from most of the big players. The Masters is always known as one of the hardest tickets to get in all of sports, so why do they make it so sparse in terms of TV coverage?  Tomorrow is the second round, and Tiger tees off sometime before 11 am, meaning fans won't be able to see one of his shots live when ESPN's coverage begins.  This, to me, is ridiculous. The problem is the people that run Augusta, they haven't adjusted to the times of the Internet and the wide-ranging spectrum of media that would enhance their tournament even more if they just would embrace it. ESPN shows "Sportscenter" live over and over again starting in the morning throughout the afternoon.  They wouldn't be losing any ratings if they had a couple of extra hours of live Masters coverage.  The PGA Tour wouldn't mind the extra exposure during their premier event of the season. So cmon, Billy Payne and your Confederate flag-waving cohorts, move into the 21st century and let the world see more of your beautiful course and beautiful tournament. **Come back Saturday morning for the next episode of "Pafcenter", including thoughts on the first two days of the Masters, the opening week of the baseball season, and the upcoming NHL playoffs**