At about 2:45 p.m., the flood lights behind the bleacher seating of the Augusta National practice spaces came on, and you could see golfers and patrons alike taking a moment to stop checking out the action on the course so they could look to the skies.
The much anticipated solar eclipse came just about full swing in the Augusta area at 3:08 p.m., presenting maximum obstruction at 76.1%. It created a quick diversion for most as the desire to get another practice shot off or to see Phil Mickelson and Bubba Watson tee off at hole No. 1 quickly snatched attention spans back to the business at hand.
It was perfect weather for viewing with temperatures around 80 degrees and nary a cloud in the sky. Augusta National provided special solar sunglasses for golfers, patrons and media to safely take in the view. And once it had reached its peak, it was back to business as usual on the course.
The brevity of it didn’t stop golfer Peter Malnati from enjoying the moment, especially since Monday was his first time stepping foot onto Augusta National’s course. Just before speaking with the press, Malnati took out his solar sunglasses, put them on and took about a five-second glance to the sky.
“My four year old, who is obviously a big part of my career and a huge part of my life, he came home [from school] on Friday, and I guess they had talked about the eclipse, and he was so distraught that we didn’t have our eclipse glasses,” Malnati said.
“So of course with Amazon, you can have anything you want in a day or two. So we got our eclipse glasses, and his excitement for this — I’m kind of a nerd about stuff like this, too. I don’t understand science, but I love it.”
The Knoxville, Tenn. resident said that the golf alone was enough to wow him in his first opportunity to play Augusta. But he acknowledged the eclipse viewing added considerably to the wow-factor.
“You know, I had so many expectations and so many — I had heard so much that it seemed like one of those situations where I almost — it could only be a letdown because I was so incredibly excited, and it wasn’t a letdown,” he said.
“I don’t even remember what year the last solar eclipse was. I know it was probably ’15, ’16, ’17, something like that. I don’t think I’ll ever forget the ’24 eclipse happened on Monday at the Masters, my first Masters. So the two memories will be connected.”
He wasn’t the only golfer who saw some deep sentiment in the eclipse-viewing moment. Will Zalatoris said that after he used his sunglasses to watch the eclipse, he was tucking them away as a lifelong keepsake.
“I found a couple of Masters eclipse glasses, which I will be keeping those for absolutely the rest of my life,” Zalatoris said. “Those will be some collectables that will be in my office forever.”
Sahith Theegala, making his second appearance at The Masters after a ninth place finish last year, was on the 18th tee box at 3:08 p.m., and he called the eclipse an experience that brought him back to his early interest in science.
“Ever since I was a kid I was a big science guy, and I’ve gotten away from it a little bit because I feel like I haven’t had time to read up on stuff,” Theegala said. “But I knew 3:08 was the max peak and every 10 minutes I would borrow someone’s glasses and I made sure at 3:08 to look up. It was pretty wild. Was it 78% or something here today? But for about 45 minutes, I tried to hit shots with my glasses on because of the haze. It almost felt hazy out there, and my eyes were almost hurting a little bit. But I was paying attention to it for sure. It’s fun.”
Here are a few photos captured during the eclipse’s 3:08 p.m.
