All it took was a couple of hours at Augusta National Golf Club to help Frank Hirst see things differently.

``A day at Augusta has changed my point of view of Americans' appreciation of golf,'' the London resident said. ``And everyone here has shown me courtesy to the furthest degree.''

Hirst, who is a member of the RAC Club and the Kingswood club near London, is one of many people who are experiencing the Masters Tournament for the first time this year.

``It's unbelievable,'' Hirst said. ``I've said it almost 20 times now. This is the best in the world.''

He has watched the tournament on television before, but there's no comparison.

``You can't get the atmosphere on television,'' he said, standing beside the tee box at the 17th hole. ``Here, you're able to take it all in. This is a once-in-a-lifetime thing everyone must do.''

Mike Lowe came to Augusta National to see the course firsthand.

``I'm just along for the ride,'' said his wife, Susanne.

The couple from Atlanta spent Friday tooling around the course, stopping at the sixth hole to watch Hal Sutton, Greg Norman and Davis Love III.

``It's beautiful,'' he said. ``You can tell they've done it before and they know what they are doing compared to other tournaments I've watched.''

That's a sentiment also held by Phillip and Mark Whitley of Charlotte, N.C. The father and son spent their time on the course watching Love.

``(This tournament) is the benchmark,'' Phillip said. ``It's the yardstick to measure all the tournaments I've been to. And it's a tough yardstick.''

The Whitleys ate lots of pimento cheese sandwiches but were saving their big shopping binge for today.

``I really can't believe I'm going to be here one more day,'' Phillip said. ``The party is supposed to be over now. We'll be OD'ing on the Masters before it is over.''

And it is not just the fans soaking in Augusta for the first time. Dennis Paulson's first round under tournament conditions was a good one: He was atop the leaderboard after Thursday.

``It's been awesome,'' he said. ``Augusta is Augusta, man. This is the tournament I've always wanted to play in.''

The only amateur left in the field, David Gossett, has been sleeping in the Crow's Nest at the clubhouse - the traditional sleeping area for any amateur participant who chooses to stay there.

``It's been a wonderful week,'' he said, adding that he had played practice rounds with Ben Crenshaw, Jack Nicklaus, Gary Player and Arnold Palmer during the week. On Saturday, he was paired with British Open runner-up Jean Van de Velde.

``I wake up each morning and walk through the champion's room,'' he said. ``This is a wonderful experience.''