Son leaves empty chair for late dad in his favorite spot at Masters

AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) - There are so many traditions that come with a visit to Augusta National.

Some are things you experience on the golf course, and others are ones you experience with someone you love.

Last year, we found a man with an emotional tradition.

“One of the great traditions here at Augusta National is when players skip the ball on the pond at 16,” Robert Luzenski told us at the 2023 Masters Tournament.

It was an emotional experience for Luzenski as he watched those skips for the first time without his father.

He first saw it in 2002 when he made his first trip from Michigan to Augusta National with his dad.

“It was a practice round was like a Monday. And we’re here and all this yelling and I’m like, my dad’s like, ‘Well, what the heck is going on? It’s not a tournament time, he said.’ I said, ‘Oh, well, we’ll just follow the sounds’”

Those sounds led him to the 16th green.

And his dad was hooked.

“He looked at my brother-in-law and I and said, ‘Put my chair right here. This is where I’m going to sit.’ And he just loved it,” Luzenski said

It became tradition for the Luzenskis.

But last year, there was an empty chair where Robert’s father used to sit.

At 95, he said he’d really love to go to the Masters one more time. Unfortunately, he ed away before that day arrived.

For Luzenski, being on the course without his dad felt different.

“We shed a few tears on the walk down here just looking at some of the trees that he had to stop at because it was such a long walk,” Luzenski said.

But being back in his father’s favorite spot, seeing his father’s favorite tradition, brought back the memory of his favorite person.

“It’s fantastic,” he said. “If I tell you, I get choked up.”

Copyright 2023 WRDW/WAGT. All rights reserved.