Getty Image / Maddie Meyer
With the 2026 Masters in the book there was no shortage of story lines this year to keep everyone entertained. Rory becoming the first back-to-back winner since Tiger Woods and having to grind it out after a lackluster Saturday and his complete inability to find a fairway… The struggles from LIV Golf stars to make the cut… Justin Rose putting himself in the mix but coming up short again… Scottie Scheffler mounting an incredible comeback after twiddling his thumbs the first two days…
Then there was all of the chatter about influencers and celebrities tainting the experience, which is tangentially related to the mounting call for Augusta National Golf Club to update its Prohibited Items list to include ‘smart glasses’ on the list.
Pressure Mounts For Smart Glasses To Be Banned From The Masters
Let me start this by saying I brought my Meta Smart Glasses to The Masters last year. To the Tuesday practice round where cameras are permitted as long as you are not taking video.
Currently, the list of prohibited items at The Masters during tournament days (Thursday-Sunday) includes:
— Electronic devices (Cell Phones, Laptops, Tablets, Beepers, Drones and other electronics), including devices capable of transmitting photo/video*
— Radios, TVs, Noise and Music-producing devices
— Knives and Weapons of any kind (regardless of permit)
— Flags, Banners and Signs
— Cameras**
— Chairs/Seats with pointed ends, Folding armchairs and Rigid-type chairs
— Strollers
— Food, Beverage and Coolers
— Golf shoes with metal spikes
— Ladders, Periscopes, Tripods, Monopods and Selfie sticks
— Backpacks, Bags and Purses larger than 10” x10” x12” (in its natural state)
While the list doesn’t outright say ‘Smart Glasses’ it is implied. It states ‘other electronics’ and specifies ‘devices capable of transmitting photo/video’ which would, of course, include Meta Smart Glasses.
Skratch golf personality Dan Rapaport is one of the people leading the charge to have Augusta National ban smart glasses outright:
Mind your Manors, people! @manorsgolf pic.twitter.com/tDR20nrTUI
— Dan on Golf (@DanOnGolfShow) April 9, 2026
Banning the glasses outright is not a straightforward situation. They can often include prescription lenses and patrons would need their prescription lenses to navigate the course. The glasses themselves are also not capable of transmitting video/photo outright without a Wi-Fi connection which isn’t readily available to patrons at The Masters.
The Daily Mail reported that The Masters has begun cracking down on smart glasses during tournament rounds. They reported “a fan was caught trying to bring the glasses into the first round of the Masters. They had used them for a practice round and were shown some mercy – the club confiscated the gadget but the fan was able to collect them as they left.”
That is a far kinder way to deal with a fan in possession of a camera than what happened to former major champion Mark Calcavechia who was booted from The Masters for being in possession of his cellphone.
As for the call to ban Apple Watches, that seems like an overstep. Not all of us can afford the $268,000+ watch that Rory McIlroy was wearing and we would still like to keep track of the time (and log our steps).
I see no reason a patron shouldn’t be banned from The Masters if they sneak them into tournament play between Thursday and Sunday, particularly if they are knowingly sneaking them in to take footage. But if we are talking about Monday through Wednesday when cameras are already permitted, what’s the point of this discussion? Let us know what you think in the Facebook comments.