Who plays in the Masters: Critics offer many suggestions

Apr. 5—Since the 1950s, two views have emerged from golfers, fans and the media. They celebrate the major champions and top-playing golfers competing. They deride the no-longer-competitive major champions and the field weakened by amateurs and international players.

Both sides cite the same cause: The Masters invitation criteria that determines field size and makeup. Whether a golfer criticized or rejoiced often depended on his invitation status. Outspoken players demanded changes or offered plaudits for the selection process.

Those criticisms did not impact a player's future invitation status, if qualified. Players could be critical. Players could turn down an invitation. The club's response was consistent. Players with single-year invitations were judged anew each year. Players with permanent invitations were always welcome.

"No one should feel obligated to come because we invite them," Roberts said, one of the several times Lee Trevino turned down his chance to play in the Masters. "But we will be delighted to invite Lee and hope he will come."

This year, the Masters cordially invited all of the 18 LIV golfers who had qualified by its published regulations.

This includes six Masters champions, three major winners, two who made the season-ending Tour Championship and five who qualified via the world golf rankings.

Club chairman Fred S. Ridley addressed the status of future qualifications Wednesday at his annual chairman's news conference.

One new qualification — inviting the reigning NCAA Tournament individual champion — was added. PGA Tour winners, top 50 in the Official World Golf Rankings and performance in the other major championships remain criteria to earn a Masters invite.

However, Masters tradition and precedent often governs its actions.

Back in 1951, for example, South African Bobby Locke had been banned by the PGA Tour. That made no difference in Augusta.

"Locke's status insofar as this tourney is concerned is that his victory in the British Open makes him eligible for the Masters' for life. He could show up tomorrow and would be allowed to play in the tourney," then Augusta National Chairman Clifford Roberts said.

Worldwide invitations

The first invitations went to golfers from five foreign countries. Of those dozen golfers from Japan, Great Britain, Canada, France and Argentina, only C. Ross Somerville teed it up. Three other English golfers not on the original list also played the First Annual Invitation Golf Tournament in March 1934.

The next year's invitations contained 45 names from the same countries. Only three played. That number would stay between two and four until after World War II. In the third year, the press learned of foreign players after an invitation was accepted.

In 1947, Locke was the first to return after World War II. British Open champion Henry Cotton, who declined an Augusta National invitation in 1934, played the following year. But the total stayed between two to four in the following decade.

Wire service reports about the American field portended the increased strength of the 1957 international contingent.

Nine other golfers from outside American played that Masters. A 21-year-old Gary Player's father "passed the hat" in response to Roberts affirmative response to his invitation request.

In 1962, press releases reported the international golfers a few weeks after the American list. This separate release continued until chairman Hord Hardin broke tradition and sent both lists at the same time in 1987.

Of the 109 golfers in 1962, 28 were foreigners following Player's breakthrough win. Through the end of the 1960s, the field consisted of 20% to 25% international players. With the spots filled by American amateur those years, U.S. professionals accounted for half to two-thirds.

During the late 1960s and early 1970s when the media and congressmen were pressuring the Augusta National to invite a Black golfer, Roberts repeatedly pointed to the American criteria.

He was quoted several years saying international golfers were selected "based on our best judgment of ability to provide competition for American players," Roberts said.

Although the number of international golfers dropped into the low teens in the 1970s and 1980s, Seve Ballesteros and Bernhard Langer earned permanent invitations.

The international list became predictable as the decade wore on as the golfers routinely matched the American criteria. Despite this, the Augusta National adhered to messaging Roberts set forth.

The selection of international players was based "on our judgement of ability to provide competition for the U.S.A. players," Hardin said in 1985. And provide competition they did as Nick Faldo, Ian Woosnam, Nick Price, Greg Norman and Sandy Lyle flourished.

With international players wining PGA events or finishing on its money list, the criteria for all golfers seemed to merge into one category. Publications, including the Masters Journal, listed the numbered qualifications for all players. The only exception was the special foreign invitation.

News reports about the 1992 list centered on two golfers. Australia's Greg Norman, who lived in Florida and played the American tour full time, got a special invitation. Tom Kite, all-time PGA Tour money-winner, did not.

"You probably shouldn't be in the tournament if you don't qualify," Kite told Golf World magazine, adding that all players on the American tour should be judged by the same criteria.

"Greg is a foreigner and was available for an invitation as a foreigner. He does play a lot worldwide. There is no qualification that permits us to invite Tom Kite," said chairman Jack Stephens in 1992.

"But we think our method has working extremely well," he said, noting the strength of that field. "I don't see any great flaw in our qualification criteria."

The snub inspired Kite. He won the Atlanta Classic, the U.S. Open and finished on the money list to get back into the Masters. It also inspired Norman, who finished T6 in the 1992 Masters to earn a trip back. In 1993, his second British Open would get him five more Augusta invitations.

The international field increased in the 1990s as more and more players qualified along the American criteria. After chairman Hootie Johnson announced the Official World Golf Ranking and other changes in 1998, 30 internationals played by 2000 and 40 just four Masters later. In the past 15 years, more than 50 international players have started each tournament.

"We are very happy with the quality and worldwide representation of players in this year's field," said Johnson, when he unveiled the list for 2002.

Special category remains

Part of what made Johnson happy that day was the special invitation he gave Norman.

"We are pleased to extend Greg a special invitation to play in the 2002 Masters," Johnson said. "Greg has provided our patrons with much excitement by his inspired and superior play during his 21 years at Augusta National."

He was not the first golfer to get a special invitation in the world rankings era. Spain's Miguel Angel Jimenez (1999), Sweden's Patrik Sjoland (1999), Australian amateur Aaron Baddely (2000) and Japan's Shingo Katayama all received one before him. Baddeley also received one in 2001 as a pro. Only Katayama made the cut.

The next 13 special invites since were issued to golfers from China, Japan, Thailand and India. 2023 special invitees Kazuki Higa of Japan and American amateur Gordon Sargent will do what only four since 1998 have done, make the cut. Sargent is the first American to receive such consideration since the four American golfers were invited from their Canadian wins in the late 1950s.

Those Canadian invitations, coupled with the number of amateur and international invitees, fueled the reasoning for inviting a Black golfer not otherwise qualified in the 1960s and early '70s.

Sifford & Clifford

"I will win the Masters someday. I guarantee you that" Charlie Sifford declared in April 1967. It sparked a half-decade debate on the criteria used for invitation to the Masters. The debate ended with Tour winners — including Lee Elder — being invited.

The qualification criteria for professionals in the era included major champions, high finishers in majors, Ryder Cup team members, votes of U.S. Open and Masters champions, and points for top play. This accounted for 64 to 69 places for professionals each Masters before the votes were eliminated and winning a PGA Tour event replaced them.

After Sifford won the January 1969 Los Angeles Open in a playoff, Los Angeles Times columnist Jim Murray called for the Masters champions to vote for Sifford in.

Sifford didn't put much hope in the Masters champions votes, "most of those winners come from Texas or the Deep South," he said. "But I find people putting words in my mouth to get at Jones (Bobby) and the Masters. So I get this letter from Bobby Jones telling me to stop threatening him. I don't threaten any man."

1959 champion Art Wall's was the lone vote Sifford received from the Masters champions.

For the next five years, the pattern of the invitation list release, calls for a Black players inclusion and others defending the criteria repeated itself.

"Sooner or later we'll have a Black man in the Masters and eventually a Black champion," Roberts predicted at the 1971 annual chairman's press conference.

He said they hoped that expanding the points qualifications entry for the 1971 tournament would allow for a Black golfer to qualify. But that didn't happen.

Roberts rejected adding a qualification to specifically invite a Black golfer.

"The biggest insult we could make would be to have a rule that we're going to invite one Black player," Roberts said.

Elder and his wife read about Roberts' press conference while flying to Chicago. Elder agreed that a Black would someday play in the Masters, "but not while Cliff Roberts has anything to do with it," he said.

After Elder won the Nigerian Open in 1971, he said he believed he'd be invited to Augusta.

"It's up to the Masters committee to recognize me as a foreign champion, as they do the winners of the French open or German open," Elder said.

U.S. Rep. Herman Badillo, D-N.Y., sent Roberts a letter during the 1972 Masters criticizing its failure to invite any Black golfers.

"I realize that Mr. Elder may not have fully met all of your prerequisites. I understand, however, that a number of other persons were invited who did not meet the qualifications," he wrote .

A year later, Badillo sent another letter to the Augusta National. And this time, he had 17 other members of Congress signed it. They cited Elder's record and his tour of apartheid South Africa with Player.

"It is probably time that your regulations be subject to a careful and reconsideration," they wrote. "Certainly, the present form of subtle discrimination taints the image of the tourney."

"We feel certain someone has misinformed the distinguished lawmakers because there is not and never has been discrimination, subtle or otherwise," Roberts responded.

Elder won the Monsanto Open the week after the 1974 Masters and earned his bid to Augusta.

Weakness and size of field

As the list of lifetime eligible golfers routinely accounted for more than 50 percent of the Masters field, the press and uninvited golfers began drawing attention to its strength in the 1950s.

In 1966, professional golfer Miller Barber complain that the Masters was too exclusive with its invitations.

"A lot of good players will be on the sidelines," Barber said. "Most of the good players feel the same way I do."

The complaints were not that only the top players get to go, but that amateurs and international golfers get to play in the Masters and they don't.

"They should invite all other tournament winners," Gay Brewer told the Atlanta newspaper in 1967. "They should also cut down on the number of foreigners invited."

Australian Jim Ferrier attributed the weakness to the amateurs and foreigners in the field.

"I have carried on a long writing campaign with Jones," Ferrier said. "Bob has been nice, but he insists that the Masters doesn't want to change its format."

Doug Ford said, "We are always talking with Roberts, trying to get the tour winners and better players into the tournament, but he won't budge. It's a losing battle."