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Masters leaderboard: The fascinating history of the sport's most famous scoreboard, created by unpaid volunteers and inspired by Red Sox

AUGUSTA is a place with more history than many other golf courses.

The iconic scoreboard, located on the right side of the first fairway, sums up America's most majestic 18 holes.


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Flags representing the nationalities of all players are displayed on the Masters leaderboard.

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Augusta's elevated leaderboard is another sight that Augusta residents will recognize.

Augusta National will be playing as soon as play starts. We can expect to see dozens of names and numbers being moved around the display, including Tiger Woods'.

What year was the Masters Leaderboard created?

It was first built in 1960. Now, 12 are located around the course to keep fans informed.

It also means that a team of 10 volunteers is on duty, from the time the first drive is made before 8am to the time the last putt is hit 11 hours later.

Each game is accompanied by an official who radios back scores. This allows for an almost instant update for all "patrons".

Who can change the scores on the Masters Leaderboard Scoreboard?

All the volunteers who participated in the course, none of whom were paid, but who did it because they loved the game and wanted to be part the next chapter of Masters history, came from all over the USA and abroad.

However, those who are responsible for the main scoreboard can have up 50 players at once. Scores are checked and verified before the magnetic numbers are placed on top of the wooden structure.

The Augusta National scoreboard, which is home to the Boston Red Sox's baseball team, inspired it.


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Augusta was inspired by the scoreboard at Fenway Park, Boston Red Sox.

Like Augusta, scores were updated via slots. Fans could keep in touch with each other without having their views obscured.

Is the Augusta leaderboard a permanent fixture or does it get discarded every year?

The scoreboard is not an permanent fixture of the course. It will be removed after Sunday's last patron leaves.

It is also decorated with flags that represent the nationalities and players on the field.

For the first year, this includes the Cayman Islands flag, in honor of Aaron Jarvis, an amateur golfer whose homeland only has 27 holes.

Jarvis' country did not appear in one version. That was the 40lb Lego replica made by Andy Duckett, a Georgian native. It contained 5,000 pieces. It measured 65 inches in length and 16 inches in height.