Rock Fore! Dough Continues as a Masters Week Tradition

While the attention of the world is primarily focused on Masters next week, Augusta does what it can to entertain out-of-town guests. We love to make them feel welcome, and one thing that brings people together is music. 

The annual Rock Fore! Dough concert began 21 years ago as a fundraiser for First Tee of Augusta. First Tee is a nonprofit focused on developing life skills in children and teens through the game of golf. Over the years, the concert has raised more than $1.8 million for the organization. 

This year’s concert, which takes place Tuesday, April 8 at Evans Towne Center Park, will feature performances by Brett Young, Russell Dickerson, Channing Wilson, DJ Rock, and the Mason Jars. It will be Young and Dickerson’s first time playing the event. 

 One of the show’s unique aspects over the years is the blended lineups, featuring multiple genres of music. Some years have had rock. Others featured country and pop. The first ten years mostly featured rock acts, but the show has morphed into primarily a country show with an occasional rock band here and there. 

The very first Rock Fore! Dough was a 1990s rock lover’s dream with Hootie and the Blowfish, Sister Hazel, and Collective Soul taking the stage. Over the years lots of great names have played this show, including Lady A, Edwin McCain, Corey Smith, Goo Goo Dolls, the Zac Brown Band, Cheap Trick, and Colbie Caillat. Country acts that have graced the Rock Fore! Dough stage include Darius Rucker, Randy Houser, Cole Swindell, Sam Hunt, Riley Green, and Kip Moore. 

If there is one truth about Masters Week, it is that the weather is going to do what the weather is going to do and the show – be it at the golf course or on the concert stage – must go on. There has never been a year, outside of COVID, that the Rock Fore! Dough concert didn’t happen. It is a rain or shine show, and that has meant some memorable events.  

The 2009 concert was the coldest Rock Fore! Dough ever. Hootie and the Blowfish, the Zac Brown Band and Shawn Mullins played to a packed house at the First Tee of Augusta (where several of the performances have been held), but we were all bundled up in our winter best. Nobody wanted to leave a show with that kind of line-up, but you could see the performers’ breath on the big screen. Now that’s cold. 

The one that will go down in history as the wildest Rock Fore! Dough, however, was in 2022. Darius Rucker, Charles Kelley of Lady A, Jordan Davis, and Ray Fulcher were set to take the stage at Evans Towne Center. As the show date approached the weather started taking an ugly turn. Heavy rain, thunderstorms, and perhaps the odd tornado were predicted.  

The show was set to go rain or shine, but as the date got closer the weather seemed to get worse as well. On show day, the weather got dangerously bad and wasn’t expected to get better. So, the show had to become an indoor event. The entire show picked up and moved across the street to the Columbia County Performing Arts Center. Big props to the show promoters and crew for pulling that off. Trust me, it was not an easy task, but the show went on. 

For the record, as of this writing, this year’s weather looks beautiful – pleasantly cool and clear. So, if you are in town, consider one of Masters Week’s grand traditions – Rock Fore! Dough.  

WHAT: Rock Fore! Dough, featuring Brett Young, Russell Dickerson, Channing Wilson, DJ Rock, and the Mason Jars 

WHEN: Tuesday, April 10. Gates open at 4 p.m. and music starts at 5 p.m. 

COST: $40 in advance and $50 at the gate. Go to rockforedough.com.