Pros give thumbs up to new female members at Augusta

Former Masters champions, who get to wear the fabled green jacket one week a year, are pleased with Augusta National Golf Club's decision to have finally accepted two women members. As Zach Johnson said, "In my opinion, the timing is right to have a couple of women members -- so far -- and hats off to them."

Johnson added during his news conference for the Barclays at Bethpage Black, "Knowing some of the members there, they're always very gracious to have new members come in and I don't foresee this being any different. Chairman [Billy] Payne . . . certainly has always had a pretty open mind about things, and that's why you've seen some tweaks and changes at Augusta and the Masters. Yeah, I think it's fantastic."

Augusta extended memberships to former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and financier Darla Moore.

Masters champ Bubba Watson said that when he got a text about the decision on women members his wife joked, "Do you think it'll be me?"

"It was good to see," Watson said. "It's always in their time. They want to do it the right way, they want to get the right membership in there that they're looking for, and obviously it's great. It's great for golf, it's great for the game."

Phil: Course spectacular

Phil Mickelson played a practice round with Keegan Bradley, Rickie Fowler and Dustin Johnson and said, "The golf course is spectacular. I know what this course means to the game of golf." He added that it is not exactly like it was for the 2002 and 2009 U.S. Opens, during which he established and burnished his place as a New York fan favorite, "but it's still Bethpage Black, one of the hardest courses in the country" . . . Zach Johnson on playing tomorrow and Friday with Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy: "I'm just hoping that my boring golf gets in the way."