Weather Halts Monday Practice Round At The Masters

The Masters: How Helene Altered Augusta National

Monday's practice round at the Masters golf tournament in Augusta, Georgia, was suspended due to weather delays amid threats of rain and thunderstorms.

After initial concerns over a possible weather delay, gates opened at 8 a.m. But media who showed up around that time were told to shelter in place, according to WRDW-TV.

By 10 a.m. patrons wearing rain jackets and carrying umbrellas lined the course under a drizzling rain, but only a few players ventured out.

Then, at 11:25 a.m., practice was suspended and the course was evacuated. It remained closed the rest of the day and tickets will be refunded.

“We are disappointed our patrons could not fully enjoy today’s practice round, but the safety of everyone at Augusta National is our highest priority and was the determining factor in the decision to cancel,” Fred Ridley, Chairman of Augusta National Golf Club and the Masters Tournament, said in a social media update.

What's Expected In The Weather In Augusta This Week

Weather for the rest of the event looks much better.

"A frontal system is sliding through the Southeast Monday, bringing bands of showers and thunderstorms to the Savannah River valley, including Augusta," weather.com senior meteorologist Jonathan Erdman said.

While that may frustrate those who had practice round tickets Monday, things are looking up for the rest of the week.

"The weather will be much better Tuesday and, for those interested in the actual Masters Tournament which begins Thursday, the only chance of rain, for now, appears to be early Friday, which may clear out before the second round tees off," Erdman said.

That's a welcome change from last year, when wild weather rocked the storied tournament played each spring at the Augusta National Golf Club, located about 135 miles southeast of Atlanta.

Hurricane Helene Had An Impact At Augusta, Too

Since then, the course was also hit by Hurricane Helene, which made landfall in Florida as a Category 4 hurricane Sept. 26 and then ripped through the Southeast with heavy winds and extreme rainfall.

Trees are part of what makes Augusta National so famous, and several of its giant pines and other trees were knocked down by storms over the years. Helene took down hundreds of them.

The storm brought winds gusting up to 82 mph to the area, and left at least 11 people dead in three surrounding counties. All of them were killed by falling trees. According to the National Hurricane Center's final report, the storm destroyed at least 362 homes and other buildings in the three counties.

While Augusta National didn't sustain any catastrophic damage, its landscape is much different now.

“I think we had minor damage to the course, the playing surfaces themselves,” Augusta National chairman Fred Ridley said in January, according to Golf Digest. “But we were able to get that back in shape ... I don't think you're going to see any difference in the condition(s) for the Masters this year.”

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Weather.com senior writer Jan Childs covers breaking news and features related to weather, space, climate change, the environment and everything in between.