Everything About the 'Champions Dinner'... 'This Year, Basque Cuisine'

Hogan Started in 1952, Trend of Preparing Native Cuisine
Ram, Basque-style Steak or Flounder Main
Scott's Seafood, Matsuyama Wagyu and Sashimi Praised
2020 Runner-up Im Seongjae's Marinated Galbi Pledge

This year’s theme is Basque cuisine from Spain. This is about the ‘Champions Dinner’ hosted by the defending champion of the ‘Masters Legends’ for all past winners ahead of the tournament’s opening. The dinner menu is decided by the previous year’s champion. Jon Rahm (Spain), who donned the Green Jacket at last year’s Masters, chose Basque cuisine. It is said that he sought help from his grandmother to obtain the recipes.

The Masters has a tradition called the Champions Dinner, where the defending champion hosts the past winners.

Rahm selected tapas as the appetizer. Tapas are traditional Spanish dishes consisting of thinly sliced bread or meat topped with various ingredients, eaten by hand. The tapas included ham made from acorn-fed Iberico pork, truffles and Idiazabal cheese, chicken, and other diverse ingredients. The main course featured either Basque-style ribeye steak or flounder dish, accompanied by his grandmother’s lentil stew. Rahm boasted, "It will be a delicious meal you may never taste again in your lifetime."

The Champions Dinner was started by Ben Hogan (USA) in 1952. Most hosts tend to showcase special dishes from their home countries. The ‘Golf Emperor’ Tiger Woods has won the Masters five times?in 1997, 2001, 2002, 2005, and 2019?and has prepared the Champions Dinner five times as well. Woods’ menu evolved from a child’s palate to more mature tastes. After becoming the youngest Masters champion in 1997, he attracted attention in 1998 with kid-friendly dishes like cheeseburgers, French fries, and milkshakes.

The "Golf Emperor" Tiger Woods has won the Masters five times in total, hosting the Champions Dinner on five occasions.

In the years following his back-to-back wins in 2001 and 2002, Woods elevated the menu with steak, chicken breast, and sushi. After his 2005 victory, the 2006 dinner evolved into fajitas featuring Mexican fried rice and grilled beans. In 2019, he returned to the top after 14 years. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Champions Dinner was held belatedly in November 2020, with social distancing measures in place, at the spacious lower floor of the clubhouse. Chicken fajitas, a Mexican style dish where chopped chicken, vegetables, and sauce are wrapped in tortillas, were served. Woods explained, "Being from Southern California, I ate this a lot growing up." The dessert included fried shrimp, spicy tuna, avocado, and churros.

Bernhard Langer (Germany) caused a stir in 1984 by serving Wiener Schnitzel made from veal cutlets, and Sandy Lyle (Scotland) in 1989 prepared haggis, a traditional Scottish dish made from minced sheep’s offal. Lyle showed tremendous passion, even appearing dressed in traditional Scottish male skirt attire. The 2011 champion Charl Schwartzel (South Africa) also wore an apron in 2012 and carefully prepared barbecue, a favorite in South Africa.

Adam Scott (Australia), the first Australian to wear the Green Jacket in 2013, highlighted Moreton Bay bugs and pavlova. Due to the name ‘bugs,’ there were concerns it might be an unappetizing dish. However, Scott proudly stated, "It’s a traditional Australian dish, and once you taste it, you’ll fall in love." Moreton Bay bugs are crustaceans with dark red shells and short, narrow tails. The dessert was pavlova, a traditional Australian fruit pie made with his mother’s touch.

Charl Schwartzel, the 2011 Masters champion, even practiced cooking for the Champions Dinner.

2015 champion Jordan Spieth (USA) received praise for his Texas-style barbecue. In 2017, Danny Willett (England) served Yorkshire pudding, a traditional dish from the Yorkshire region. Sergio Garcia (Spain) in 2018 presented an international salad with ingredients from around the world, a main course featuring lobster and rice, and Tres Leches cake for dessert. Patrick Reed (USA) in 2019 offered a prime bone-in cowboy ribeye course. Initially, he considered a large tomahawk steak but switched due to limited table space. He added macaroni & cheese, corn cr?me br?l?e, creamed spinach, steamed broccoli, and various desserts.

2020 winner Dustin Johnson (USA) chose filet mignon steak and sea bass prepared with a Japanese miso-based sauce. The main filet mignon is an expensive boneless beef cut, either tenderloin or sirloin. He accompanied it with sausage bread, lobster, corn fritters, house salad, and mashed potatoes. Dessert included peach cobbler and apple pie with vanilla ice cream.

Hideki Matsuyama, the first Japanese player to win the Masters in 2021, focused on ingredients and flavor. His main dish was top-grade Japanese Wagyu beef. That was not all. For appetizers, he served sushi and sashimi representing Japan, and as a starter, silver cod seasoned with Japanese miso. For dessert, he chose a Japanese-style strawberry cake.

2022 champion Scottie Scheffler (USA) themed his dinner around Texas-style barbecue. Mini cheeseburgers and fried shrimp were appetizers. Next came tortilla soup with avocado, crispy tortilla chips, sour cream, cilantro, and lime. The main course was Texas ribeye or charred skate. Mac & cheese, jalape?o cream corn, fried Brussels sprouts, seasoned fries, and sticky chocolate chip cookies for dessert completed the meal.

2020 runner-up Im Sung-jae promised to prepare traditional Korean marinated ribs if he wins the Masters.

Korea has yet to produce a Masters champion and thus has not had the opportunity to host the Champions Dinner. K.J. Choi, a PGA Tour winner with eight career victories, once made headlines with a bold statement that “savory cheonggukjang would be meaningful.” Im Sung-jae, who finished runner-up at the 2020 Masters, pledged to prepare Korean-style traditional marinated galbi for the Champions Dinner. He said, "I think players from all countries will like it," and promised, "I will grill it myself." This year’s Masters will be held from April 11 for four days at Augusta National Golf Club in Augusta, Georgia, USA.