Progress came to Augusta National on Wednesday in the unlikely guise of a 65-year-old real estate lawyer from Tampa, Florida. Fred Ridley took over as chairman of Augusta National last August, and his first major initiative is a new tournament for the world’s best female amateurs. It starts next year, when it will be held on the Saturday before the Masters starts, 6 April. It will be the first women’s competition held at the course. It was only six years ago that the club finally allowed women to become members – now it is opening itself up to female players, too. Augusta National has finally made it to the 21st century, 18 years late.
This isn’t equality. The club is not starting a women’s Masters. The competition is for amateurs rather than professionals, and only the last round will be held at Augusta National; the two before it will be at the nearby Champions Retreat. But change comes awful slow at Augusta. And by the pace things move around here, this is a leap forward. And there is more to come, too. Ridley also promised that there “will be more women members at Augusta National”. The club does not publish a membership list but in 2012, when it first allowed women in, it only had two female members.
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