As the rest of her family looked out over the 16th hole waiting for the next threesome , 5-year-old Amanda Curvino worked at picking blades of grass off her sneakers.

Her little fingers swabbed the soles of her shoes with ice and squirts of water until she caught a glimpse of her Uncle Mark's navy vest, which she had been following all day from hole to hole.

``He's doing good,'' she said Thursday of her uncle Mark Calcavecchia's game during the first round of the Masters.

Amanda traveled with her family from Canton, Conn., to attend her first Masters. Up to now, her Uncle Mark and miniature golf are the only connections she's had to the sport.

Hundreds of children who attend the practice rounds and tournament days bring varying levels of interest in golf. Some have held a golf club only a couple of times in their lives. For others, the Masters is like the Disney World of golf. And they say it offers a lot to learn.

Spectator Colby Cohenour, 8, said he watches golfers, hoping to pick up ways to improve his backswing. He studies them on television at home in Dallas, and he's taken golf lessons since he was 6.

``I like driving the ball,'' he said. He can drive the ball 100 yards.

Earlier this week, 5-year-old Brock Kovach sat under a golf umbrella as rain drenched the second day of the practice rounds.

He took pictures as he watched golfer Bob May putt.

``He wants to drive golf balls all the time, putt golf balls all the time,'' said Brock's mother, Kathy Kovach. She said Brock golfs with his grandfather, Popsie, in his hometown, Wyomissing, Pa.

``He's really focused,'' she said. ``He will do a bucket or two of balls at a time, and he's done this for a few years. (At the Masters), he's got to see every shot.''

Taylor Brown of Peachtree City, Ga., said his two years of lessons are paying off. He likens his golf game to that of the pros he's watched the past couple of days.

Except for one thing.

``They hit it a lot farther,'' the 9-year-old said.