Augusta National releases statement on death of Hootie Johnson

Hootie Johnson, who served as chairman of Augusta National Golf Club for eight years, passed away Friday morning at the age of 86.

Johnson's successor as chairman at Augusta National, Billy Payne, released a full statement on behalf of its membership:

Augusta National Golf Club and the Masters Tournament are today mourning the loss of William Woodward "Hootie" Johnson, our beloved Chairman Emeritus. Hootie passed away this morning at the age of 86, leaving behind a legacy of exceptional service to our Club, our Tournament and the game of golf. Hootie was named Chairman of Augusta National on May 1, 1998. During his eight-year tenure, we always admired his genuine and unrelenting respect for the traditions and vision of the Club and Tournament established by our Founders Bobby Jones and Clifford Roberts. He boldly directed numerous course improvements to ensure that Augusta National would always represent the very finest test of golf. Simultaneously, Hootie expanded television coverage of the Masters, improved qualification standards for an invitation to the Tournament and reopened the series badge waiting list for the first time in more than 20 years. Many of these measures brought more people than ever closer to the Masters and inspired us to continue exploring ways to welcome people all over the world to the Tournament and the game of golf.

Click here for the rest of the statement from the club.