What Happens After You Win The Masters: Traditions and Celebrations

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Winning The Masters is the greatest achievement in professional golf. But what happens in the hours and days after the final putt drops? What traditions await the champion, what obligations come with the green jacket, and what does life look like in the immediate aftermath of joining the most exclusive club in sport? Here's a complete guide to what Masters champions experience after the final round.

The Butler Cabin Interview

Immediately after completing the final round, the new Masters champion is escorted to Butler Cabin — Augusta National's historic interview location — for the first green jacket ceremony. The previous year's champion waits there with the iconic green jacket. Augusta National's chairman presides. The ceremony is private, filmed, and broadcast on CBS, creating the first image most viewers see of the new champion in their jacket. The Butler Cabin setting, with its fireplace and Augusta National regalia, is one of golf's most distinctive broadcast locations.

The 18th Green Ceremony

The formal outdoor ceremony follows on the 18th green, where the gallery gathers to watch the jacket presented for the second time. This is the image that photographs most often — the champion in their green jacket, trophy in hand, Augusta National's 18th hole behind them, the crowd surrounding the scene. The ceremony is brief and formal, consistent with Augusta National's aesthetic preference for restraint over spectacle.

The Trophy and the Claret Jug Equivalent

Unlike The Open Championship's Claret Jug — which the winner holds for a year before returning — the Masters champion receives the green jacket and a sterling silver replica of the Masters Trophy. The original Masters Trophy, featuring the clubhouse facade and all past champions' names, stays at Augusta National. The replica is the champion's to keep permanently.

The Press Conference Marathon

After the ceremonies, the new champion faces an extended press conference with the international golf media. Questions cover the round, the career, Augusta memories, the journey to this moment, and the champion's immediate plans. For first-time winners, the emotional weight of these sessions is significant — finding words for an experience that transcends language is one of the post-victory challenges that champions often describe as unexpectedly difficult.

The Champions Dinner Invitation

The new champion immediately becomes host of the following year's Champions Dinner — the Tuesday evening gathering of all Masters champions before the next year's tournament. As host, they choose the menu, which is served to every living Masters champion in attendance. The menu choice becomes a point of anticipation and sometimes amusement each year — international champions often choose dishes from their home countries, creating unexpected culinary moments in Augusta National's formal dining room.

The Green Jacket at Home

The champion takes the green jacket home with them — the only year they may possess it outside Augusta National's grounds. They may wear it publicly during that year, though most champions treat it with the reverence the tradition demands. The following April, when they return to Augusta as defending champion, the jacket returns to its locker at the club, where it stays for the rest of the champion's life.

The Lifetime Invitation

Every Masters champion receives a lifetime invitation to compete in future Masters tournaments. This is the most generous competitive exemption in major championship golf — past champions play Augusta National as long as they wish, regardless of their world ranking or competitive form. The exemption has allowed beloved champions to compete at Augusta well into their 60s, creating the annual tradition of older champions making ceremonial starts before the competitive rounds begin.

The Honorary Starter Tradition

Augusta National's honorary starter tradition — where past champions of a certain age hit the ceremonial first tee shots to open the tournament — is among the sport's most touching annual moments. Champions who've transitioned from competitive play to this ceremonial role describe it as one of the most meaningful experiences of their association with Augusta. The tradition connects the tournament's past to its present in a way that no other major championship replicates.