sports
Gnome unknowns: Masters chair Ridley in dark about ornaments’ Augusta future
Internal secrecy appears to stretch to Augusta chairman
TL;DR
- Augusta National Chairman Fred Ridley is in the dark about the future of the Masters gnomes.
- Speculation suggests 2026 could be the last year for gnome sales, but officials have not confirmed this to Ridley.
- The gnomes are highly sought after, sell out quickly, and have significant resale value.
- Ridley stressed Augusta National's position on a potential golf ball rollback, citing concerns about increasing driving distances and the game becoming more one-dimensional.
- He stated that "failure is not an option" regarding finding an agreement on the rollback.