Dick Siefert was camped out at the Augusta National's 13th hole watching players such as Larry Mize, Sandy Lyle and Mark Calcavecchia pass by.

But his big thrill came when he stood and looked at the leader board nestled among the trees behind the 13th green.

``My man is 7-under par,'' Siefert said with a big grin, noting the final entry by Phil Michelson's name.

In his first trip to the Masters, Siefert, of Fort Valley, Ga., traveled around the front nine and the holes nearest the clubhouse before settling in at the end of Amen Corner, and all the while he kept up with the action through the leader boards.

``If you don't have the scoreboards, you might as well not even come - you'd have no idea how anybody's doing,'' Ten Alexander of Greenville, S.C., a veteran of 18 Masters, said of the National's elaborate scoring system.

Elaborate?

Granted, the white boards with boxy black, green and red letters don't look very elaborate. But behind those 11 hand-posted boards is a system of high-tech computers and radio transmission units manned by more than 400 volunteers to make sure folks like Siefert and Alexander can keep up with their favorites.

``Clifford Roberts developed our scoring system and it's quite unique,'' said Charles H. Morris, chairman of the Masters Score Reporting System Committee. ``(Roberts) never wanted a scorer to be between a spectator and a golfer or for a scorer to be on TV or to interfere with play.''

Roberts also developed the system of reporting scores in over and under par, as opposed to reporting their totals.

Though the logistics of the National's system have changed over the years, the idea has stayed the same: scorekeeping blends into the background, like the green stakes that hold up the ropes.

Here's how it works:

A green-side reporter is stationed at each green. There are also reporters along the fairways at longer holes. When a player's final putt is holed, the green-side reporter punches that score into a hand-held radio transmission unit.

That score is automatically fed into the computer scoring system which is picked up at the scoring control center, as well as hand-held units and computers throughout the course.

Attendants at leader boards and standards - the small boards that list the players currently on the green and their scores - are notified of the scores on computers or hand-held units and they post them on the board.

The system is backed up by a telephone system throughout the course and a hand-posted leader board in the scoring center.

This is the first year the Masters is using a system of lap-top computers at all leader-boards. The units, which show the official leader board, are housed in green boxes behind the leader board. When a new score or entry comes through, it's highlighted in yellow until an attendant presses a key to indicate that it's been posted for the fans to see.

All leader boards, standards, green-side reporters and reporters along the fairways are linked by radio headsets. Those are used to report any errors, corrections or messagesdirnhn.

``With this system, on an ideal day, nobody would have to talk to anyone,'' Morris said.

If there is an error, fans are often the first to spot it. Frank Fortune, who works on the standard at the third hole, remembered once posting Arnold Palmer at 2-over par instead of 2-under par. Members of Arnie's Army rushed to the tower to tell him that was wrong.

``If one spectator says it's wrong, we usually don't worry about it. If two say it's wrong, we'll start calling in and asking if they're sure,'' said Fortune, who's in his 18th year of working the scoreboards.

One of the most important skills for a standard worker is ``being able to alphabetize,'' said John Ratliff, also at the third-hole standard.

As he says that, he's looking into a green trunk with white cards bearing the names of all the players. Some of the cards look brand new, such as Tiger Woods', while cards such as Ben Crenshaw's look a bit yellowed.

Morris said cards are replaced when they get old and brittle.

Life can be hectic on the leader board, where four to seven people work to post players scores for 18 holes.

``Earlier today, I had just posted Corey Pavin's latest score, and I came back over here and it said to drop Corey Pavin and post Craig Stadler,'' said A.L. Posey, who works at the third-hole leader board.

Posting a new entry, he said, can take about 10 minutes. The first days are the most hectic because players are moving on and off the board quickly.

Thursday started with all the major champions on the board. Then as players got hot or cold, they were posted or removed.resn

This morning, fans will see the names of the top four or five players from Thursday, with space left open for players who shoot hot rounds today.

Electronic scoreboards, now used at many courses, aren't in the Masters' near future, Morris said. The goal is to keep the boards as uncluttered and unobtrusive as possible, while getting information to fans.

And as long as there's a chance to see the Masters and play a round on the course in late May, the Masters will have no problem finding volunteers.

``This is a contribution of time and effort to the greatest golf course and the greatest golf tournament in the world,'' said William Prout, who works at the third-hole leader board. ``Why shouldn't we want to be a part of that.''