Why Columbia is Augusta’s little sister for The Masters. ⛳
You know it’s Masters Week when everyone at work is tuned into Amen Corner on their laptop (#protip: CMND + W will close your browser tab, and then CMND + Shift + T will reopen it 😏) – and we’re already making plans to watch Sunday’s final pairing at Craft and Draft. So dig up whatever Masters swag you’ve got in your closet and saddle up for a “tradition unlike any other.”
Columbia-natives we’re watching this year are Dustin Johnson (the #1 golfer in the world, also a Dutch-Fork grad who had to withdraw from The Masters after falling down the stairs last year) and Wesley Bryan (former UofSC golfer + half of the trick-shot YouTuber duo, the Bryan Bros.). 🏌
DYK? Columbia is only a 1 hour + 17 minute-drive from Augusta, making it a huge hotspot for golf fans traveling to the tournament – but who don’t want to (or can’t) stay in Augusta.
Why? Due to the intense demand for a place to stay in Augusta during the tournament, the prices there are pretty insane – if you can even find a room or a reservation. Even the Sleep Inn is $599/night. The Partridge Inn by Hilton was going for $1,235/night, but it’s full now. AirBnB is a little less expensive – we found an option 7 miles away for ~$240/night. But if you want to stay at the house 2 miles from the course – you’ll pay $740/night.
Columbia is a little more affordable – but it’s still gonna cost you.
🏨 Several hotels in Columbia started booking up a while ago – some with rates as unusually high as ~$400/night, like at Aloft in the Vista. Or the Sheraton on Main St., where rooms are going for ~$300/night. But if you stay a little on the outskirts of downtown Cola (but still en route to Augusta), the Hampton Inn (near Lexington Medical Center) will only cost you ~$200/night.
🍽 Downtown Columbia restaurants book up just as quickly as hotels do, too – even the ones that don’t take reservations have been slammed this week (and plan to stay that way through Sunday).
Motor Supply – who has a complete Masters-themed food + cocktail menu – sees more International guests this time year than any other. Their head bartender noted he sees a lot of people from Scotland.
On the flip side, Terra – who’s featuring a bone-in steak dinner special + a few reserve wines from their cellar – mostly sees locals who are entertaining Masters clients this week. Both are booking fast (some reservations came weeks in advance) but they still have limited space available.
Bourbon (who does not take reservations) gets super busy during Masters week every year – probably because they cater to Whiskey drinkers. The Oak Table, another Main St. restaurant who sees a ton of walk-ins this week, said in previous years they’ve served many guests from Asia + Europe.
Other notable places to celebrate Masters Week: Liberty in the Vista has put together a Masters-themed menu this year and Kaminsky’s has green-velvet cake. Now it’s par-tee time. ⛳
Are you headed to Augusta National, or sticking back in Colatown?
If you’ll be hanging out with your closest friends (the ones who couldn’t get tickets), decked out in Masters gear, making your own pimento cheese sandwiches and placing bets on who chokes harder than Jordan Spieth in 2016, then cheers to you; we’re doing the same thing this weekend.
