Augusta National announces College GameDay at the 2020 Masters; Par-3 Contest canceled

College GameDay is coming to the Masters.

Augusta National Golf Club and Masters Tournament chairman Fred Ridley announced Tuesday the popular ESPN show will be broadcast live from Augusta National Golf Club from 9 a.m. to noon on Nov. 14, ahead of the CBS broadcast of the third round. The studio will be staged overlooking Ike’s Pond and the 9th green of the Par-3 course.

“Given the circumstances brought about by the pandemic, the delivery of quality content is as important as ever to the storytelling of the Masters Tournament,” said Ridley. “While we will dearly miss our patrons at Augusta National this fall, we are excited to showcase what promises to be a truly memorable Masters in a variety of ways for viewers around the world.”

“When exploring ways to showcase a fall Masters, we were drawn to the concept of hosting College GameDay at Augusta National to introduce the Tournament to a new audience and provide even more anticipation and excitement to the event,” Ridley continued. “We appreciate the collaboration with ESPN, our longtime broadcast partner, for this first-of-its-kind opportunity.”

Alabama at LSU is scheduled for that Saturday at 6 p.m. on CBS and has been featured on GameDay a record 11 times. In September CBS Sports chairman Sean McManus hinted Saturday’s third round would be a great lead-in to the game, which has lost its usual luster with 2-2 LSU falling out of the national rankings.

Georgia (at Missouri) and South Carolina (at Ole Miss) are both on the road that weekend and Clemson is idle.

Ridley also announced the cancellation of this year’s Par-3 Contest, traditionally played each Wednesday of Masters Week.

“The fun and excitement of watching Masters competitors with their friends and family is what makes the Par 3 Contest such a special part of Masters Week,” said Ridley. “We know that experience could not have been replicated without guests and patrons at Augusta National, and we eagerly anticipate the opportunity to bring back this signature tradition.”

It marks the second time the contest has been canceled, the first coming in 2017 due to inclement weather.

The 84th Masters is set to begin on Thursday, Nov. 12 with Jack Nicklaus and Gary Player acting as Honorary Starters. Tee times will be announced at a later date, but players will be scheduled to start off the first and 10th tees in two waves the first two rounds.