The Masters’ Most Coveted Souvenir Isn’t What You’d Expect
A tiny garden gnome has become the hottest item at Augusta National, with fans lining up before sunrise just to get their hands on one.
This year’s version, nicknamed “Peaches,” sells for just $49.50 in the Masters shop. But good luck finding one – they’re usually sold out by 8:30 each morning.
The 18-inch tall figure looks like a golf-loving Santa Claus, decked out in a mint-green polo covered with Augusta’s famous foods like peach ice cream sandwiches and pimento cheese. He’s even got his own little Masters bag and sandwich in hand.
“You simply can’t get away from the gnomes,” says Elliott Heath, Golf Monthly’s news editor who was at Augusta this year. “Everywhere you turn you see someone clutching one with this proud little smile on their face.”
The gnome craze started in 2016, and it’s only gotten bigger. Augusta National strictly limits how many they sell each day, though they won’t say exactly how many.
Here’s where things get wild: These $49.50 gnomes are selling for up to $2,000 on eBay. That’s a mind-boggling 3,900% markup.
Some lucky buyers won’t even risk putting their prized gnome in checked baggage. “There were a number of gnomes on my flight home, being carefully stored in the overhead bins,” Heath notes.
For smaller budgets, there’s a 9-inch “Caddie” version for $29.50, plus mini ornaments and even salt and pepper shakers.
But the gnome’s crazy resale prices are becoming a headache for Augusta National. The tournament isn’t meant to be a profit opportunity for scalpers.
“This will surely be addressed at some point,” Heath predicts. “Maybe they’ll just make enough so everyone who wants one can get one. That would certainly bring those eBay prices back to earth.”
Until then, if you’re heading to Augusta next year and want your own Peaches, you better set that alarm clock extra early.
