NO STOPPING THEM: Lucy Walters and Bill Medford, both in their 80s, left their spouses at home to recover from surgery while they enjoyed the Masters Tournament on Sunday.

They met in sixth grade in the 1930s and have been friends ever since. They've been going to the Masters for almost 50 years.

"I haven't missed a year. It's wonderful," said Walters, 82, of Augusta.

More golf can be seen by watching television, but that doesn't give a sense of the course, said Medford, an 81-year-old from Lexington, Ky.

PATRON MANAGEMENT: Watching the Masters in person can be challenging, said Terry Kanake and Jerry Hupfeld, of Cedar Rapids, Iowa.

The large gallery makes it difficult to catch the action, but it's worth the trip nonetheless, they said.

"There's no question about that," said Hupfeld, who says Augusta National lives up to its mystique.

It was their first time attending the tournament, and they said images on television don't do the course justice.

GRAND SIGHTS: Bryan Salley compared Augusta National Golf Club to the Grand Canyon in terms of beauty and the difficulty in capturing it in pictures.

"For instance, the Grand Canyon, once you see it in person, it blows your mind," the Aiken resident said. "It's much better in person."

It was his first trip to the Masters. He said he came looking forward to seeing Tiger Woods.