The legendary Masters Tournament kicks off at the Augusta National Golf Club for the 88th consecutive year today. It’s a tradition that adds to the list of reasons why Augusta is often on the map, and, naturally, is the biggest buzz in the city today.
The game of golf is not as widely exploited in the movies as much as baseball, football, or other national pastimes, but it has been both the subject and story-driver of a handful of beloved films.
While most tee-time fanatics will be watching the back-to-back coverage of the event with wide eyes, to commemorate another tournament and to maintain the spirit of the game, here are four movies featuring Augusta’s most treasured sport.
Of course, this Harold Ramis-directed classic would make the list. The story of Danny Noonan’s journey for a college scholarship by way of caddying at the Bushwood Country Club is as synonymous in film comedy as the Masters is to golf. Just as the ace-in-the-hole cast, from Chevy Chase’s Ty Webb and Rodney Dangerfield’s boisterous Czervik to Bill Murray’s insane Carl Spackler (with his dancing gopher fiend).
The movie satirizes the snobbery of country club golf in an endearing, silly fashion, and is just as much a quotable laugh riot today as it was 44 years ago.
(Caddyshack is available for streaming on FuboTV and for rent on AppleTV for $3.99.)
This Disney biopic about Francis Ouimet, the “father of amateur golf,” spins an immigrant’s yarn in early 20th century America, where success in the sport was attained by the wealthy. Young Francis seizes every opportunity to hole-in-one at his discretion, before caddying at the Country Club course in Brookline. He grows proficient at his game, but still lives beneath the poverty line, until the president of the USGA personally invites him to play at the U.S. Open, changing the course of his life.
It is a story of courage, class struggle, and discipline that features a young Shia LaBeouf in the lead role. Likewise, it offers a thorough replication of the early history of the sport in the United States. It’s inspiring and fun for the whole family and is sure to evoke a tear or two.
(The Greatest Game Ever Played is available for streaming on Disney+ with a subscription.)
This often-overlooked documentary sees the true adventure of European golfer, Adam Rolston and caddy, Ron Rutland playing the game in a most unlikely place: the Altai Mountains of Mongolia. Their game spans over 1,000 miles across the shifting countryside, and they are joined by a stray dog who follows their every move.
What begins as a fool’s errand becomes an endearing odyssey and cultural study that is mesmerizing to witness, all to the tune of a record-setting hole.
(The Longest Hole is available for rent on Google Play for $3.99.)
Another iconic golf comedy is this Adam Sandler romp from 1996. Happy Gilmore (Sandler) is an unsuccessful ice hockey player who returns home to find his beloved grandmother owes hundreds of thousands of dollars in back taxes. Shunned from his old game and tasked with placing her in a dubious retirement facility, he quickly looks for methods to cover the cost. When some moving men challenge him to a long-drive contest, he accidentally finds his stroke of genius. Happy is then invited by a washed-up, now-armless pro, Chubbs Peterson (played by Carl Weathers), to play in a local tournament, where he is a sensation. Happy learns he must refine his etiquette and prepares for the Championship Tour, motivated by his grandmother and Chubbs.
It is a heartfelt farce, with plenty of silly Sandler-isms, an infamous brawl scene with Bob Barker, and many a delightful cheer to go with it.
(Happy Gilmore is available for streaming on Netflix, Peacock, and FuboTV through a subscription.)
Dylan James graduated from the Savannah College of Art & Design with a BFA in Dramatic Writing. He has studied both the ‘show’ and ‘business’ aspects of show business since childhood, and writes through sociological analysis, seeking relevance in the art and commerce for the moment.
