Richmond County authorities made no arrests at the Augusta National during the Masters golf tournament for the second year in a row.
But a loud police response just outside the course on Washington Road was heard during TV coverage of Sunday’s final round, with sirens punctuating the golf course. It came around 4:22 p.m. Sunday as fire engines and first responders rushed to a serious single-vehicle rollover crash with injuries on Riverwatch Parkway. Authorities say a reckless driver was traveling westbound at mile marker 2, left the roadway on the north shoulder and struck an embankment causing the vehicle to flip and come to rest on its roof. Extrication was needed to remove three out of the four occupants.
Sheriff’s Capt. Scott Gay said deputies were also involved with a chase involving a DUI suspect that started on Interstate 20. According to booking records, 27-year-old Trase Sowell was charged with DUI and reckless driving around 6:30 p.m. Sunday, just as the Masters Tournament was wrapping up.
Sowell was captured on Washington Road at Berckmans Road, just outside the course. He was later released on bond on the misdemeanor charges. A Facebook page for the Augusta man describes him as the owner of a local trail design company.
The chase was at least the second incident during the tournament along Washington Road. Last Monday night, murder suspect Tarance Revell killed himself after a chase down Washington Road. The 46-year-old man was being sought in the shooting death of his girlfriend Latoya Price on Algernon Circle, where her body was found that day.
Inside the esteemed golf course, security had a mix of fans who were escorted out this week after over-consuming alcohol and violating course conduct rules, Capt. Gay said. Those were handled by the security team with Securitas.
On Sunday, alcohol is served later in the day, which helps with cutting down on bad behavior, Capt. Gay said. Still, nobody did anything worthy of criminal charges like they have in previous years, with some fans making headlines for doing snow angels in the sand bunkers or trying to take a handful of sand as a souvenir.
“I think people are our here to have a good time,” he said. “People are seeing sunlight and things like that. I think they partake a little bit more than they should because it is the start of spring. … They had some that over consumed, but not to the extent that we needed to charge them.”
Fans who are escorted out lose their badge, which his returned to the club with a description of the event.
During the tournament, Masters fans have their pick of domestic light beer, import beer, white wine and their unique Crow’s Nest, a proprietary blend brewed exclusively for the Masters.
Alcohol sales are not unique to the Augusta National. In fact, golf and alcohol continue to make headlines. In February, an Arizona news outlet covering the WM Phoenix Open noted that “it is clear that golf and alcohol are frequent companions.”
“Through the years this tournament, in particular, has produced several viral instances of intoxicated people streaking on the course or jumping into the water,” the reporters wrote. “This year, the alcohol undoubtedly has made it harder to keep balance in the slippery and muddy conditions.”
Because the Phoenix Open is known for raucous crowds and heavy alcohol consumption, officials made the decision this year to stop selling alcohol in the early afternoon Saturday in the interest of crowd control.
In Augusta, Capt. Gay said they follow other tournaments and evaluate the problems they have. “We try to respond and make sure those types of problems don’t happen at the Masters,” he said.
For the 2024 Masters, it was mission accomplished.
