It's hard to imagine the capitalist kings who run Augusta National passing up the chance to make millions of dollars, but that's exactly what they do when The Masters rolls around every April.
The first Major of the year begins next week and so sports fans will be transfixed by events at one of the most exclusive golf clubs in the world.
Why? Well, while The Open beats them all for history, the revered Masters is the top Major for its aura of and tradition, from the winner's famous Green Jacket to the caddies in their white jumpsuits.
"Augusta is very unique in the sense that it's very traditional," Richard Barrett of punditarena.com told Vincent Wall on Newstalk's Breakfast Business.
"There's a great quote that says, 'If the Masters offered no money at all, golfers would still play', because it's just built up this community and this aspect around it where it's just outstanding traditional values that trump golfing."
Listen to Richard Barrett on Breakfast Business here:
But perhaps the most extraordinary thing about The Masters is that the powers-that-be at Augusta National still don't bother with contracts for their sponsorship agreements. The result is the likes of IBM, AT&T and Mercedes Benz all agreeing to part with millions of dollars without any contract to back up their investments.
Set against the modern age of massive corporate investment in big sporting events, it's an arrangement that throws back to a different era, way back to 1956 when the first 'deal' with CBS was reportedly struck ... with a handshake, of course.
"The way sponsors work at the moment is that there's no contracts per se," Richard continued. "With traditional golf tournaments - like the US Open, etcetera - there's contracts, litigations that go with signing a sponsorship deal.
7 days until the Masters #cominginapril #themasters pic.twitter.com/Lmfd3v4BOc
— Masters Tournament (@TheMasters) March 30, 2015
"But with The Masters it's all done with a handshake. It's very old school. So there's no actual formal contract or written contract. It's two guys out on a golf course [who] supposedly shook hands ... there was a guy from CBS and a guy for Augusta and they shook hands and decided that, 'look, there's no need for a written contract. You'll just have to abide by these certain guidelines that we'll write down, but you'll have the rights every year'."
Three-hundred strong, invitation-only, and boasting some of America's most powerful men, the members' list at Augusta National includes billionaires Warren Buffett and Bill Gates, and is run on "nobility, graciousness and traditional values", according to Richard. "They don't put financial gain ahead of their values."
Phil Mickelson and Tiger Woods at The Masters in 2005 (Inpho)
When Vincent likened the financial running of The Masters to a "multi-million barter deal", Richard concurred: "It's very different to the way everything else works in golf ... effectively it's an old boy's club of high-network individuals.
"CBS make a small bit of profit but it's only to cover their costs ... and that all leads back to that handshake many years back on the golf course where no money changed hands and that was it."
"Two members we'll mention are Warren Buffet and Bill Gates." Richard added. "I think $143billion is their net worth. There's no way that if this club is going to be failing financially that guys like that won't step in.
"There are 300 members and you can guarantee every single one of them is a multi-millionaire."
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