The Masters tournament in November has already sparked a wave of speculation about the atmosphere, course condition and international media attention, given the fact that its planned Nov. 12-15 dates would land in the heat of the NFL and college football seasons.
That is, if the coronavirus pandemic lessens enough for a normal sports schedule.
Consider this conflict, again, given some sense of normalcy: the third round of the Masters would be at the Augusta National Golf Club on the same day that Tennessee plays at Georgia in Athens, 94 miles away; and on the same day Notre Dame plays at Georgia Tech in Atlanta, 146 miles away.
Georgia graduate Kevin Kisner was two shots off the lead following the final round of the 2017 Tour Championship in Atlanta when he chartered a helicopter to take him to Athens to watch the Bulldogs play Mississippi State.
Kisner was asked by the Associated Press if he would do the same thing at the Masters.
“I would not,” he said.
Fans going to the Masters might also remember it’s the last golf tournament where cell phones are still not allowed on the grounds. So no checking scores. And don’t expect Augusta National to post football updates on its iconic field scoreboards.
Of course, some of the top college football games could be scheduled at night on that Saturday, creating the best of both worlds for football fans: Masters by day, college football by night.
What about Masters Sunday conflicting with the NFL? Especially since CBS has a stake in both.
It will be interesting to see the final resolution of that — especially considering NFL commissioner Roger Goodell is also a member of Augusta National.
