Augusta National Golf Club is known worldwide for its long history and role as host of the annual Masters Tournament. The course, which first opened for play in 1933, was built on a former nursery, and still includes many of the plants from its former life, as well as holes named after them (like Pink Dogwood, Magnolia and Juniper).
Since its debut, the course has consistently ranked as one of America’s best. But it is not without controversy — astoundingly, the course only opened its doors to African-American players in 1990, and women in 2012.
Since then, it’s taken on a somewhat more democratic approach, although it still sticks fiercely to its status as a private course. As such, Augusta is only open to members and their guests, and membership is by invitation only. Because of this, many settle for the next best option — watching their heroes tee off at the annual Masters event.