The PGA Tour earlier this year launched its app for Apple Vision Pro, and now the Masters is joining the fray. Along with IBM, the Masters has launched an app for Apple Vision Pro that includes most of the features seen on Masters.com or the tournament's mobile app.
Users of the app can see 3D renderings of Augusta National, along with other features such as live videos and player tracking. The app also includes video AI narration that's seen on Masters.com via IBM's watsonx generative AI feature.
Augusta National Chair Fred Ridley today was asked about technology's role in advancing the product for fans while also keeping the tournament's longstanding traditions in place.
"We certainly want to progress, we want to try new things, we want to continue our mission to reach out and to grow the game," he said. "But at the same time I think we have to be cognizant of the fact that part of the magic of this place is those traditions and the mystique. ... So I think it's a case of being -- maybe having a degree of self-awareness and accept and be comfortable who we are but at the same time not be afraid to try things from time to time."
IBM and the Masters have between 75-80 employees working inside Augusta National's broadcast center this week. Over the last eight years, IBM has gathered data on more than 170,000 shots at Augusta National that it's used to develop and personalize the tournament's app, officials said.
