Eight members of the Baldwin Wallace University Sport Management program left today for a trip to world famous Augusta National Golf Club in Georgia to work behind the scenes at one of the top golf tournaments in the world, The 87th Annual Masters Tournament.
Scheduled for the next four days, their involvement extends beyond the tournament’s duration.
The group left today for what will be the second consecutive year of BW students working at this event.
While the majority of the group has never been to the tournament before, two members of the program will be returning for their second year.
One student who attended the event last year, David Lamb, a senior sport management student, has been promoted to a supervisor after his first year of working there.
“I’m excited to be going back,” Lamb said. “Not many people can say that they’ve been to the Masters Tournament. Now I can say I’ve been to it twice.”
Lamb said that while the experience is great, the event involves a lot of work.
“It was some of the hardest work I’ve ever done,” Lamb said. “We were working close to 14-hour days every day, it was pretty much wakeup, work, sleep, repeat.”
The work the group will be doing for the majority tournament will revolve around operating one of the eight concessions stands throughout the course. Their responsibilities will primarily be to make sure that the food and beverages are stocked for grab and go purposes, and to support the large demand that the tournament brings as every concession stand does an estimated $30,000 in sales each day.
Tony Dick, an associate professor in the School of Business, said the work they are doing is especially impactful for students aiming to work in the sports industry.
“It [this experience] doesn’t just look good on a resume,” Dick said. “The experiences and connections that the students gain will open the way for further opportunities in the field and the work itself will give them an idea of what to expect in the real world.”
This trip and excursion is one of many experience building trips that the Sport Management students have had access to, with opportunities at the Kentucky Derby, Formula 1 Events and future Super Bowls.
