Masters Preview: Golf Driving Unprecedented Travel Demand

The most prestigious event in golf is back. The Masters tournament, celebrating its 90th edition at Augusta National Golf Club this week, is renowned for conjuring up magical stories of intrigue. The latest came last spring, with Rory McIlroy‘s demon-exorcising 2025 playoff victory that capped his career Grand Slam, yet there are still exciting new pages waiting to be written in the tournament’s grand history books.

This year’s field will feature 91 players who earned their spot in Augusta via 26 different qualification routes, while 22 golfers will make their Masters debut. World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler enters as the favorite with one title and two top-five finishes this year, and he will be seeking his third green jacket in five years.

Even without Tiger Woods (out due to injury) and with McIlroy no longer chasing his first green jacket, there is still skyrocketing demand for tickets. As a result, event organizers and their partners are having to find new ways to increase their revenue through ticket sales, luxurious hospitality packages and seamless transfers to and from the club for celebrities and those with never-ending deep pockets.

When the tournament gets underway on Thursday, golf enthusiasts can expect a traditional sporting experience with the same drama and tension that has made this the most famous event in the world for nine decades.

Augusta National continues to evolve too, though. Below we tee up the new major additions spectators can look forward to this year:

Ticket Prices Rise

Much has been made of the rising prices and the enforced crackdown on resale tickets for golf’s premier event. Tickets for the 2026 Masters were being priced at $125 for Monday and Tuesday’s practice rounds, $150 for Wednesday (including the Masters Par 3 Contest) and $160 for tournament rounds from Thursday through Sunday — representing roughly a $20 increase on the prices from one year ago.

The Masters only sells tickets directly through its lottery system, with applications closing around a year in advance for the next edition. Although fans do try to secure their places via secondary markets, Augusta National strictly prohibits the resale of any tickets.

The policy was enforced especially strictly last year, when hundreds of ticket holders were reportedly questioned and had their weekend passes voided for violating the no-resale rules.

The competitive nature of the official Augusta National ticket lottery, where tickets can cost around $100 to $160, is still fueling demand for resale tickets on secondary markets despite the crackdown. While those applying to the lottery are estimated to have only a 1-in-200 chance of securing Masters tickets, four-day passes are now being listed on alternative resale platforms (e.g. StubHub) for more than $20,000 with the figures still rising.

Meanwhile, resale platform SeatGeek has stopped listing Masters tickets for 2026 altogether, citing the squeezing restrictions on resold tickets by Augusta National.

Hospitality

For fans and guests heading to Augusta National this year, there are a select number of hospitality offerings available at different tiers.

Map & Flag, the first and only official Masters hospitality venue outside Augusta National Golf Club and steps away from the tournament’s North Gate, opened in 2024 and is designed to provide a premium patron experience. The venue provides a combination of two floors with more than 80 television screens, an outdoor garden, live entertainment, merchandise shop, food and beverage concepts and unique memorabilia from the archives including photographs and artifacts.

At last year’s Masters Tournament, access to both the course and the Map & Flag venue would have set guests back a cool $17,000. For 2026, the Masters is taking it up a whole other level.

According to Sports Business Journal, the catalog for Official Masters Hospitality listed a luxe hospitality package totaling a whopping $219,600 for premium patrons. As part of the upgraded package, guests would be able to access curated services such as transportation, housing, fridge and pantry stocking, tee times, Masters Tournament badges and the opportunity to book private sessions with golfing legends and celebrities for fireside chats, instruction sessions and more.

Elsewhere, Azalea Hospitality was offering comprehensive 2026 Masters packages, including event tickets, private housing (hotels), shuttle services and VIP hospitality access at Enterprise Mill. The family-run business has worked closely with Masters patrons, corporate clients and local enthusiasts to assist any ticket holders looking to sell their tickets via a verified resale service, and it also provides accommodations and services tailored to tournament visitors for the week.

Other providers offering travel and hospitality packages for the Masters, such as accommodation, tailored concierge services and rounds of golf on local courses, included the likes of Go Privilege, Elite Sports Travel, Golfbreaks, Bucket List Events, MAC Sports Travel and eSeats Travel.

Fans out on the course will again have to abide by Augusta National’s strict, traditional rules to not disturb the players and disrupt the experience for patrons and fellow attendees. Among the restricted items are cell phones, tablets, cameras and laptops, and there are size limits on bags, backpacks and purses as well as a ban on outside food and beverages.

A key addition for players this year is the new multi-million-dollar Player Services Building, which is for the exclusive use of players, their families, caddies, coaches and trainers. Members of the public and press are forbidden from entering the three-story building, which is situated behind the practice range.

Built in the tournament’s signature white-shutter and black-shingle style, the setup has been created to enhance and maximize players’ performance levels. Amenities are said to include a players’ lounge, dining room, outdoor terrace and an underground parking facility.

Aviation

Augusta, Georgia, is not necessarily the easiest destination to access during Masters Week, however it can still be served by the local Augusta Regional Airport with connecting flights via Delta and American Airlines from hubs such as Atlanta, Charlotte or Columbia. It can also be reached by car along major highways but traffic is notoriously severe during the week of the headline golf tournament.

Nevertheless, for the ultra-rich and high-net-worth individuals who can afford them, private jets are now the transportation mode of choice to quickly reach the hallowed grounds of Augusta National.

During the 2025 Masters tournament, almost 3,900 private charter flights flew into Augusta-area airports, according to Ace Jet. That number is expected to rise to well above 4,000 this time around, per Front Office Sports, due to limited commercial access where the airports may only be small and regional.

This uptick in demand for private jets and charter flights is leading NetJets and Augusta Regional Airport to construct a new private terminal which is open in time for the competition. The terminal, which features its own private lounge, 432,000-square feet of parking space, direct access and short transfers to the Golf Club, is expecting to manage up to 775 arrivals and departures over the coming days,

The Next Rory McIlroy?

Of the 91 golfers who accepted invites to this year’s Masters, there are 17 past champions in the field. The rest of the lineup will be looking to dethrone McIlroy, who secured his maiden triumph at Augusta last year and finally completed a career Grand Slam in his 17th try.

As the Northern Irishman looks to defend his green jacket, who from the field could replicate his success and win their first Masters title? Here are the top candidates:

Ludvig Åberg is making his third Masters start in 2026, having finished as a runner-up in his debut in 2024 before losing a joint lead with McIlroy to end up in seventh in 2025. The Swedish rising star, a graduate from the famous sports-specialized high school Filbornaskolan, has achieved five PGA Tour wins to date and is a two-time recipient of the Swedish Golfer of the Year award.

Cameron Young is the third-highest-ranked player in the current PGA Tour World Golf Rankings and arrives at Augusta National having clinched the biggest win of his career at the 2026 Players Championship at TPC Sawgrass. In his four Masters appearances to date, the New Yorker, who played collegiately for Wake Forest and turned professional in 2019, has two missed cuts and two top-10 finishes.

Xander Schauffele possesses a stellar record from his Masters career so far, with three consecutive top-10 finishes and five since 2019 backing up his two major wins (at the British Open and PGA Championship) in 2024. While the Masters has eluded him so far, Schauffele, who was the PGA Tour Rookie of the Year 10 years ago, has been a consistent presence on Tour and figures to break through at Augusta sooner or later.

Justin Rose has so often been a contender at major championships; he has three second-place finishes at the Masters, two second-place finishes at the Open Championships and one third-place ranking in the PGA Championship. The British golfer, who was born in South Africa, first came to prominence at the 1998 Open Championship by finishing fourth as an amateur and he will be keen to take that final step for Masters glory this week.

Gary Woodland‘s story will be one of the most heart-warming at Augusta National this week. The 2019 U.S. Open champion took time out of golf to have brain surgery in 2023 and then struggled with anxiety and stress on his return, brought on in part by large crowds. Seven years on from his major success, the University of Kansas alumnus is back on the Masters field and recently won the Houston Open — victory in Augusta would surely crown one of golf’s great return storylines.