Augusta, GA
This little-known Masters keepsake is a favorite of champions' wives
Ben Crenshaw and his wife, Julie, at the 2015 Masters at Augusta National Golf Club.
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AUGUSTA, Ga. — At Augusta National, there’s more traditions than we can count. The green jacket. The Champions Dinner. Skipping balls across the pond. The Par-3 Contest. The list goes on and on.
But we recently stumbled upon another we didn’t even know existed. And if a handful of golf writers didn’t know this was a thing, there’s a good chance most of the general public didn’t either.
What is it, exactly? A golden locket presented to the defending champion, given to them at the beginning of the Champions Dinner every Tuesday of Masters week.
GOLF
During a Q and A with Colt Knost at a Cabot event in Augusta on Wednesday night, two-time Masters champion Ben Crenshaw explained the locket and its significance.
Crenshaw has served as host of the Masters Champions Dinner since 2005, a gig that Byron Nelson previously held. One of his duties is presenting the defending champion — in this case, Jon Rahm — with an inscribed gold locket in the form of the club’s emblem, which serves as their certificate of membership into the Masters Club.
“My favorite thing to do is to award the defending champion this beautiful locket, a solid gold locket that the club gives to the defending champion,” Crenshaw said on Wednesday. “It’s a pendant that is supposed to go to your wife. It’s a beautiful gold locket that opens up three ways and you open it up and it has a silhouette of the Augusta National clubhouse … Bobby Jones. … It’s just a beautiful piece of art.”
GOLF
While Crenshaw said it’s supposed to go to players’ wives, that actually might be something that manifested over the years.
“It’s really the mens’ locket, but what does a man do with a locket?” Julie Crenshaw, Ben’s wife, told GOLF.com. “So he said let’s put it on a necklace, so all of the wives have started to wear it.”
Julie wasn’t sure when exactly the tradition started — perhaps with Barbara Nicklaus, she said — but added that she wears her necklace the entire month of April.
But no matter how many times you win at Augusta, it’s just like the Masters green jacket: “This is symbolic that you are in the Champions’ Club, so you only get one,” Julie said.
Check out the video below to learn and see more of the locket.
AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) – Students showcased drones they built during a two-week summer camp at Augusta Regional Airport on Friday.
12 junior and high school students attended the camp, where they learned to fly and build drones designed to help others.
Anderson Puryear, a student, said the camp focused on delivering small medical supplies.
“It was focused on delivering small medical supplies like an EPI pen or glucose packet for like diabetics and for people with allergies in need in the real world that could obviously help save lives, and if people are like in a place in a boat or like in the desert or in the forest where they can’t easily access those supplies it can save their lives,” Puryear said.
The airport partnered with Georgia Tech, state troopers and the Aircraft Rescue and Fire Fighting Department for the Air Edu Summer Camp.
Copyright 2026 WRDW/WAGT. All rights reserved.
AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) – The 10th annual Juneteenth Augusta Festival brought families to the Augusta Fairgrounds on Friday despite the muggy heat.
Cultural and community-focused events, live music performances and food trucks were available at the celebration.
Tonia Hill, attending the Juneteenth celebration, said she loves the holiday and is supporting the community, though she acknowledged the weather conditions.
“I love Juneteenth. And I’m supporting everybody. It’s hot. It’s hot. It’s hot,” Hill said.
The festival runs until 10 p.m.
Copyright 2026 WRDW/WAGT. All rights reserved.
AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) – The Augusta Dream Center is seeing more families turn to its food pantry this summer as children lose access to school lunches.
Organizations like the Augusta Dream Center see a surge in families who relied on school lunches during the academic year, according to Hallie Kohan, assistant director.
“We see a lot more families that have young kids who are in need that simply don’t have those meals they are normally getting,” Kohan said. “We see an influx of families that come through.”
Demand is up, but the food supply is not keeping pace.
“Right now we are having some food distribution issues so while we are seeing an increase in families, we are seeing a decrease in the amount of food coming through our doors,” Kohan said.
The center is asking the community to host food drives or donate kid-friendly items such as mac and cheese and oatmeal.
Every Sunday the Dream Center opens its doors for a hot meal, serving as many as 120 people.
“Families can come in and get their hot meal. They sit down, it’s dignified, it’s a diner,” Kohan said. “It’s a welcoming experience for kids to come in and not feel like they are in need.”
No paperwork is required to receive help.
“Just because you think someone is in a great situation, in today’s economy you never know,” Kohan said. “It could be your neighbor, mom, or best friend.”
The Augusta Dream Center food pantry is open Tuesdays from 10 a.m. to noon and Thursdays from 5 to 6 p.m. Hot meals are served Sundays from 5 to 6 p.m.
Copyright 2026 WRDW/WAGT. All rights reserved.
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