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A tradition unlike any other.Patrick Smith/Getty Images

  • The Masters is one of the best sports events in the world.

  • Some of what makes the Masters so great is the quirky traditions found only at Augusta National.

  • From cheap food to strict rules and a bizarre lack of animals, it is a tradition unlike any other.

Food prices are ridiculously low.

Masters food concessions menuMasters food concessions menu

Masters food concessions menu.Andrew Redington/Getty Images

Read more: Food at the Masters is so cheap, you could order one of everything, and it would only cost $56.50

Tipping is banned.

augusta concession standaugusta concession stand

Jamie Squire/Getty Images

Source: NYT

Cell phones are prohibited at all times and cameras are not permitted during the tournament.

Rickie Fowler at the MastersRickie Fowler at the Masters

Andrew Redington/Getty Images

Read more: The Masters golf tournament bans cell phones and that rule is not going to change anytime soon

It’s one of the only places in the U.S. where there are long lines for payphones.

Masters patrons using pay phones.Masters patrons using pay phones.

Masters patrons must use pay phones provided by Augusta National.NICHOLAS KAMM/AFP via Getty Images

There’s a huge fence around the course to keep out animals. There has been one deer sighting in the last 65 years and visitors often talk of never seeing a single squirrel.

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Scott Halleran/Getty Images

Source: NYT

Birds are also mysteriously rarely seen at Augusta National. Bird sounds are heard during television broadcasts, but there is a rumor that those sounds are artificial.

The MastersThe Masters

Andrew Redington/Allsport

“Also, there are no birds, squirrels, insects or any other living creature indigenous to planet earth at the Masters. Nowhere on the property. Well, okay, there must be some somewhere. But the Post’s Dave Sheinin and I made a multi-day quest for a single bird sighting. So far, none. Those bird calls that you sometimes hear on the Masters broadcast? The source remains undiscovered.” — Thomas Boswell of the Washington Post.

The lakes are also reportedly artificially enhanced to look immaculate on TV. Golf Digest tested the water on one hole in 1996 and found food dye.

A pond at the MastersA pond at the Masters

JIM WATSON/AFP via Getty Images

Source: Golf Digest

But like many golf courses, there is good fishing at Augusta National. The players, though, don’t like to talk about it because it is forbidden.

The 12th hole at the Masters.The 12th hole at the Masters.

The 12th hole at the Masters.Patrick Smith/Getty Images

In 2011, Monte Burke of Forbes interviewed golfers about the best fishing spots on the PGA Tour. When Augusta was brought up, he described their responses as “squeamish” and they only admitted to hearing there were some good spots.

A former caddie was willing to tell Burke that the best spots are the creek in front of the 12th hole (“full of bream”; seen above) and the pond at the 16th hole (“brimming with bass”).

Only 4 minutes of commercials per hour are allowed during the broadcast.

Masters TV cameraMasters TV camera

A CBS TV camera at the MastersRob Brown/Augusta National via Getty Images

Source: ESPN

TV commentators are not allowed to refer to fans as “fans” or “spectators.” They are to be called “patrons.” In fact, weekly passes to the Masters are called “patron badges.”

Masters patrons with badges on their hatsMasters patrons with badges on their hats

David Cannon/Getty Images

The rough is also to be referred to as the “second cut.”

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AP

Source: The Age

The Masters banned CBS broadcaster Gary McCord in 1995 for saying, “They don’t cut the greens here at Augusta, they use bikini wax.”

gary mccordgary mccord

Gary McCordChristian Petersen/Getty Images for The Match

Source: SI

Players had to use local caddies provided by Augusta until 1983. Players still must use local caddies if they play at Augusta outside of Masters week.

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David Cannon/Getty Images

Source: ESPN

Players are allowed to use their own caddies now, but they have to wear the Augusta uniform — green hat, white jumpsuit.

Tiger Woods and Justin Thomas walk the course at Augusta NationalTiger Woods and Justin Thomas walk the course at Augusta National

Tiger Woods and Justin Thomas walk the course at Augusta National.Augusta National via Getty Images

Fans … oops, we mean patrons … patrons aren’t allowed to wear their hats backward.

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Scott Halleran/Getty Images

Source: NYT

Patrons can bring collapsible chairs to sit on, but those chairs are not allowed to have armrests.

Masters golf chairsMasters golf chairs

Chairs at Augusta National for the Masters.Ezra Shaw/Getty Images for Golfweek

Source: Augusta.com

Running is not allowed unless you are a player.

Hideki Matsuyama runs past the azaleas at the Masters.Hideki Matsuyama runs past the azaleas at the Masters.

Hideki Matsuyama runs past the azaleas at the Masters.Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images

Grounds crew members used to wear hard hats.

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@GolfMonthly

The course used cows as lawnmowers in the 1940s.

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The grass at Augusta National is immaculate.@DaveTindallgolf

Augusta is its own universe with a tenuous connection to the outside world (see: all the ridiculous anecdotes in this slideshow).

But WWII affected Augusta just like it did the rest of the country. During the war, Augusta didn’t have the manpower to maintain the course, so they set 200 cattle loose on the grounds in hopes that they would “trim” the grass by eating it.

There is an odd myth that the grounds crew at Augusta packs the azalea plants with ice if spring comes early. The idea is that this will keep the plants from flowering too soon before the tournament.

Rory McIlroy hits out of the Masters azaleas.Rory McIlroy hits out of the Masters azaleas.

Rory McIlroy hits out of the Masters azaleas.Charles Laberge/Augusta National via Getty Images

Read more: This year’s Masters may help disprove a bizarre conspiracy theory about the tournament and its flowers

There is a house located in the middle of the Augusta National parking lot because the owners refuse to sell it. The family has reportedly turned down “millions.”

Google Maps view of Augusta NationalGoogle Maps view of Augusta National

Google Maps view of Augusta National.Google Maps

Read more: Augusta family next to Masters golf course keeps turning down millions for their 1,900-square-foot house

You can’t apply to become a member at Augusta and nobody outside of Augusta knows how many members there are.

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REUTERS/Mike Segar

It’s nearly impossible to become a member at Augusta.

You have to be nominated by a current Augusta member, and new initiations generally aren’t accepted unless someone quits or dies. The total membership hovers around 300.

Augusta is closed in the summer to keep the course in pristine shape.

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Harry How/Getty Images

Golfers must return their green jackets to Augusta National one year after winning the Masters. After that, their jacket can only be worn when they are at Augusta National.

Tiger Woods is presented with the green jacket after winning the 2019 Masters at Augusta National.Tiger Woods is presented with the green jacket after winning the 2019 Masters at Augusta National.

Tiger Woods is presented with the green jacket after winning the 2019 Masters at Augusta National.Augusta National via Getty Images

Also, if a player wins more than one Masters, he does not receive a second green jacket unless his size changes considerably.

Phil Mickelson and Tiger WoodsPhil Mickelson and Tiger Woods

Roberto Schmidt/AFP/Getty Images

Read more: Tiger Woods did not win a fifth green jacket for his victory at the Masters

There is no set field size for the Masters. Therefore, past winners who get a lifetime invitation to compete in the Masters are not taking spots from younger, more deserving players.

Bernhard LangerBernhard Langer

Andrew Redington/Getty Images

Read more: How to qualify for the Masters, the world’s most prestigious golf tournament

Players are given a brand new Mercedes for use during the week.

Mercedes at the MastersMercedes at the Masters

Mercedes at the MastersAndrew Redington/Getty Images

Golf cart drivers who are hired to drive the players around Augusta National also pick up the golfers at the airport in the Mercedes they will be using. The cars also have a number in the back window so that employees can always identify the players by which car they are in.

Read more: What it’s like to drive Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson, and other pro golfers around at the Masters, according to one woman who did it

Tickets are dirt cheap; only $375 for a patron badge that grants you access to the entire week. But getting one is a lot like Green Bay Packers season tickets. There is a waiting list and it has been closed since 2000. A limited number of single-day tickets are sold via lottery each year. Those are $115 for the tournament rounds and $75 for practice rounds.

Masters Patron BadgesMasters Patron Badges

Charles Laberge/Augusta National via Getty Images

Getting a patron badge is a lot like Green Bay Packers season tickets. There is a waiting list and it has been closed since 2000. A limited number of single-day tickets are sold via lottery each year. Those are $115 for the tournament rounds and $75 for practice rounds.

Read more: Masters tickets are cheap for a major sporting event, but only the Super Bowl is harder to get into

You can go to jail for selling tickets.

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Getty Images

Twenty-four people were arrested outside Augusta in 2012 for trying to scalp tickets.

The course is strict about who it lets into the tournament and it’s illegal to sell tickets within 2,700 feet of the gates.

You can also go to jail for trying to take sand home as a souvenir.

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The sand at Augusta National.Simon Bruty/Sports Illustrated via Getty Images

In 2012, Clayton Baker made headlines when he made a quick run to a bunker to get some sand to take home. He was quickly arrested and thrown in jail. The charges were ultimately dropped, but he says the incident cost him $20,000 and led to depression because of how he was treated.

Read more: A man who was arrested for taking sand from the Masters recounted how it cost him $20,000 and left him ‘seriously depressed’

Meanwhile, those bunkers at Augusta are filled with mining waste.

Augusta National bunkerAugusta National bunker

Augusta National bunker.Al Tielemans /Sports Illustrated via Getty Images

You can only ask for autographs in one part of the course.

Jordan Spieth at the MastersJordan Spieth at the Masters

Jordan Spieth at the Masters.JIM WATSON/AFP via Getty Images

The new pro shop is unlike any other in sports. It is the only place to buy Masters gear, and they offer 125 different styles of caps.

Masters pro shop hallwayMasters pro shop hallway

The Masters

Read more: The Masters’ new pro shop at Augusta National will make any golf fan drool

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