When you think of the Masters in Augusta, what do you think of?
Lily white outfits. Fancy hats. Serene scenes. Birds chirping. Golfers tipping their caps to their most heated rivals on the grandest stage possible.
Jason Kelce and a troop of other celebrities who’ve never been connected to the world of golf are having a blast, yelling loudly, and looking ready to shotgun a beer on the 13th hole.
Well, that might be what the Masters is becoming after ESPN’s addition to the biggest golf tournament in the world.
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The charm of the Masters has always been the sense of disconnection they have from the outside world. No matter what meme or drama or salacious story is bubbling outside, it never reaches within the cathedral of golf.
It’s why people with tickets aren’t allowed to have their phones. You’re thrown back in time when, instead of trying to find the next viral clip, you’re living and breathing in the moment that is in front of you.
But with the inclusion of Kelce, whose bravado and boisterous nature are beloved in other sports, it has taken away from what generally makes the Masters so special.
It’s not Kelce himself, but he’s a microcosm of the overarching issue that the Masters is happening. Where a viral clip of a celebrity or a kid of a player is becoming more important than a veteran golfer hitting the shot of their life to move up the leaderboard.
It’s the chase for relevance in a day and age in sports, where every league, tournament, and competition is trying to adapt to the ever-changing media landscape.
And ironically enough, a product of the NFL, the one sport that in North America remains king regardless of what changes they make, is disrupting golf’s most beloved event.
In the short term, the flood of Kevin Hart, memes, and other loud personalities might be a win for a tournament that is forever stuck in the past.
But the long term? Like a time machine, changing the past might completely ruin the future.
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