AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) – More homes are available for rent during Masters week this year compared to last year, with some homeowners scrambling to prepare their properties in the final weeks before the tournament.

Some homeowners have been preparing for months, while others are trying to complete renovations in the remaining weeks before the tournament.

Julia Quick, a homeowner, said her family has been working on improvements every night. Her husband handles repairs and projects, while she packs a room each evening after work. The family hired Carolina Carpentry and Construction to paint the house and brought in cleaners this week as a trial run for next week.

“We’ve got some landscapers come in Saturday, got pallets of sod and pine straw and mulch to be put out and some new plants,” Quick said.

More homeowners enter rental market

Quick said more people are renting their homes this year compared to last year.

“Everybody I talked to was talking about renting their house this year, and last year, most everybody was talking about not renting their house. So it seems that it’s more saturated,” Quick said.

Stacey Greenway, vice president of tournament housing, said she has never seen this many homes registering this late in the season.

“I definitely think that with Helene remodeling everything, it gave a lot of homeowners the opportunity to get into the rental market,” Greenway said.

Greenway said the number of homes registering has increased. In March, three to five homes typically register per week. Now three to five homes are registering daily.

“A lot of people are still not rented, so they’re starting to reach out to other agencies and list with those as well,” Greenway said.

Homeowners adjusting strategies

Some homeowners are lowering prices, booking vacations to leave Augusta or leaving keys with rental companies in hopes their properties will be rented while they are gone.

Quick said she has noticed less traffic on rental platforms.

“I noticed a lot less traffic because like with Airbnb when I went through there, I can see and have some conversations back and forth,” Quick said.

Quick said the increased supply could benefit visitors but may affect future rental decisions for homeowners.

“It’ll be great for people coming into town because that’s going to drive the price down. Might make it not as lucrative for us to rent our house out in the future because if I can’t, first we have to pay for the vacation and doing all the things because I’m not going to rent the house if it doesn’t look perfect for somebody to come stay in,” Quick said.

Rental companies said some homeowners are willing to accept lower prices this year and hope for better rates next year.

Copyright 2026 WRDW/WAGT. All rights reserved.

AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) – The latest edition of the Best of the Gridiron Awards show is in the books.

Presented by the Augusta Sports Council, here’s a full list of the high school football athletes recognized for their performances during the 2025 season.

GEORGIA — FIRST TEAM

Offense

• QB: Mekhi Wade — Lincoln County
• RB: Tamari Curry — Westside
• RB: Kelby Glaze — Lincoln County
• WR: Jayden Futrell — Harlem
• WR: Jaris Sinkfield — Thomson
• OL: Solomon Mathis — Hephzibah
• OL: Carter Messick — Grovetown
• OL: Bryan Sapp — Burke County
• OL: Liam Thompson — Harlem

Special Teams / Flex

• Athlete: Jack Rhodes — Aquinas
• Kicker: Fortson Partridge — Lincoln County
• Punter: Shelton Freeman — Westside

Defense

• DL: De’Antre Charles — Westside
• DL: TK Reeves — Burke County
• DL: Marcus Taylor — Laney
• DL: Jeremiah Wynn — Lincoln County
• LB: Chase Burley — Westside
• LB: Logan Heyward — Hephzibah
• LB: Elijah Hutchinson — Aquinas
• LB: Marty Thomas — ARC
• DB: Kennedi Bailey — Thomson
• DB: Brennen Bjorkman — Greenbrier
• DB: Zay Brinson — Thomson
• DB: Joshua Crawford — Westside

SOUTH CAROLINA — FIRST TEAM

Offense

• QB: Xavier Geter — Midland Valley
• RB: Michael Doe — North Augusta
• RB: Preston Smith — Midland Valley
• WR: Kyson McLeod — South Aiken
• WR: Shaheed Williams — Strom Thurmond
• OL: Carter Boatwright — Strom Thurmond
• OL: Malcolm Gaston — North Augusta
• OL: Damien McIntosh — Aiken
• OL: Seth Short — North Augusta

Special Teams / Flex

• Athlete: Kaleb Simpkins — Strom Thurmond
• Kicker: Jacob DeGennaro — North Augusta
• Punter: Knox Young — South Aiken

Defense

• DL: Simeon Jones — North Augusta
• DL: Davion McKinnis — North Augusta
• DL: Brandon Poston — Aiken
• DL: Keyaideen Williams — Silver Bluff
• LB: Grayson Kitchings — Aiken
• LB: Jalen McGraw — Bamberg-Ehrhardt
• LB: Akiem Mills — Ridge Spring-Monetta
• LB: Deonte Phillips — Strom Thurmond
• DB: Donte Bell — North Augusta
• DB: Jaiden Holloway — Ridge Spring-Monetta
• DB: Mekhi Quiller — Fox Creek
• DB: Dallas Williams — North Augusta

Along with the over 50 award winners, the event also recognized the nation’s top Division-1 and FCS college punters.

Georgia’s Brett Thorson took home the 2025 Ray Guy Award back in December.

The born and raised Australian punted 42 times during Georgia’s 2025 season, averaging 45-yards per punt.

“Obviously, Georgia is home for me. Obviously, I don’t have a hometown that I have any bias to, so since moving here, Georgia has been home for me. It’s an extreme honor to keep it, and to know Ray was from Georgia himself is a nice little bit of icing on top,” said Thorson.

The Citadel’s James Platte was awarded the FCS Punter of the Year Award.

An award that seemed way out of reach during his early playing days.

“It’s a dream come true. Growing up always seeing all the Ray Guy awards coming out of here, especially when I was getting into punting a lot heavier in high school. It was always an aspiration and if you told me six years ago I was going to be here, I probably would have called you a liar,” said Platte.

Copyright 2026 WRDW/WAGT. All rights reserved.