One of the things I enjoy about the amateurs who play in the Masters is how many of them wear gear they have purchased in the club pro shop during tournament week. I was first reminded of that when I saw Danny Lee sporting a Masters sweatshirt for one of his practice rounds. And it came to mind again this afternoon as I strolled by the huge live oak behind the clubhouse and saw that Steve Wilson had donned a Masters visor for his game today, and Drew Kittleson a Masters hat. It seems very quaint and, well, amateurish. And I mean that last word in only the very best way.

It is also fun to see how much it means for those amateurs to be playing Augusta National, and they seem to get almost as excited in the pro shop as they do on the golf course.

But they are by no means alone in that department, for the shop is frequented by veteran players throughout the tournament. In fact, there may not be another in the professional game that they visit as much.

Most of the time, it is simply a matter of players buying up shirts and pullovers with the famous logo, for friends and family and, of course, for themselves. Some, however, will make last minute purchases for their rounds, should conditions dictate that. Like Stuart Appleby, who wore an Augusta National sweater in the tournament a couple of years ago.

He, like many of his fellow competitors, knew just where to shop.