1 week Ago By Karlton Clay
AUGUSTA, Ga. (WJBF) - For many people, they’ll wait their whole life to go to The Masters.For others, they’ve been going their whole life.
For those fortunate enough to go to The Masters year after year, it just seems to get better and better for them, and for one man from Augusta, he has decades of attending under his belt. So much so, that he speaks about his experience to groups throughout the year. “Fantastic.
Effervescent. Unbelievable. Wow!” said Joe Bowden who has attended 62 Masters in a row.
In just 4 words, Joe Bowden sums up this magical place called Augusta National Golf Club.“This golf course is evolutionary. It evolves constantly,” said Bowden.
Bowden would know. He’s attended 62 Masters in a row. “Major changes - they are everywhere.
What do you see? You see a lot of people. In 1963, there weren’t that many people. Years before that they were giving tickets away,” said Bowden.
His first one was in 1963. He was there to see Arnold Palmer win but that didn’t happen.“We were all hoping he’d win, but this guy from Ohio named Jack beat him and everybody hated Jack because of that,” said Bowden.
But there were good memories too. The one that tops them all would happen 41 years later, when Arnold Palmer played his 50th and final round at The Masters.“I followed him every step of the way and tears just running down your face, and watching him come up 18.
.. Ugh! And then his interview afterwards, he was bawling.
He just put a towel over his head and left,” said Bowden.Bowden could tell stories about this place for hours, and he usually does so he’s not a man who’s normally at a loss for words, but when describing The Masters experience, there’s one word that sums it all up.“Indescribable in the whole dictionary of words,” said Bowden.
Bowden says that he has pictures and memorabilia that he’s collected through the years; however, it’s all packed away in storage as his home gets rebuilt because unfortunately, his home was one of many in the area hit hard by Hurricane Helene that came through Augusta just 6 months ago..
