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.
Getty Images
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) – Volunteers came together Saturday to help clean up an Augusta neighborhood.
The cleanup took place on Wheeless Road and Dorn Road.
Jeremiah Atkinson started the event as a way to clean up trash dumped in the area and help the community.
He said they had at least 30 bags picked up as of Saturday morning.
“My message is if you see one piece of trash, pick it up and help Augusta clean it up because I feel like that would be more efficient, just pick up one piece of trash a day, just one to help out the community,” Atkinson said.
Organizers also provided snacks for volunteers.
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Housing costs are often the biggest Georgians deal with every month, so it’s important to try and save money where possible.
Last week, WalletHub released its ranking of the most affordable cities to buy a home. It analyzed 300 cities based on 10 metrics, with the biggest weight going to housing affordability and cost per square foot.
Best city to buy a home in Georgia?
Augusta ranked the highest among Georgia cities, ranking 8th overall and 3rd best in the midsized cities list.
Augusta real estate prices
According to Zillow, as of March, the median list price for a house in Georgia is $205,000 with a median sale price of $187,283. About 57% of sales are under the list price.
The average rent, as of April, is $1,365 per month.
Augusta cost of living
The MIT Living Wage Calculator reports the hourly pay needed to support yourself and/or your family, assuming full-time employment. For Richmond County (Augusta), it’s $20.31 for one adult, $28.16 for a two-adult household with one working, and $14.08 for a two-adult household with both working.
Children obviously increase the wage needed. Depending on how many adults are working, the necessary pay figures may increase by up to $13 for just one child, with more needed for additional children.
Worst city to buy a home in Georgia?
The Georgia city with the lowest ranking on the list overall was Sandy Springs. However, with 300 cities, landing at No. 151 doesn’t make it nearly the worst in the nation. Sandy Springs was No. 56 on the small cities list.
What are the best cities to buy a home in US?
- Flint, MI
- Detroit, MI
- Surprise, AZ
- Yuma, AZ
- Akron, OH
- Pittsburgh, PA
- Memphis, TN
- Augusta, GA
- Indianapolis, IN
- Cleveland, OH
Miguel Legoas is a Deep South Connect Team Reporter for USA Today. Find him on Instagram @miguelegoas and email at mlegoas@gannett.com.
AUGUSTA, Ga. (WJBF) – Senate candidate Derek Dooley made several visits to the area on Friday.
Dooley had stops in both Lincolnton and Augusta on May 29 and was joined by Georgia Governor Brian Kemp for his “Georgia First” tour. He spoke about one of the issues he finds in politics.
“But the other piece of it is the corruption. People sit on these committees. They have access to information that none of us have. And then you look up 2 or 3 years down the road and their wealth is just skyrocketing,” Dooley said. “You’re outperforming every investor out there. And I think it’s shameful. I think it erodes trust. It’s something that I will never do.”
“Politicians were out there getting paid. They were coming back home. They’re raising money and campaigning while the government shut down,” Kemp said. “What Derek’s saying, if he’s up there, we’re not going to allow legislators to get paid. We’re going to take away their benefits. That way, you won’t ever have another shutdown again.”
Dooley is facing Congressman Mike Collins in a runoff for the Republican nomination for U.S. Senate.
The winner of the Republican nomination will face incumbent Sen. Jon Ossoff in November.
Photojournalist credit: Regynal McKie
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