By Aimee Edmondson
and Kelly Daniel
Staff Writers
Augusta Chronicle

If golf fans seeking Masters tickets have the type of luck that Bob Hopkins found Sunday, it'll be a good week to be in Augusta.

Within minutes of arriving in town Sunday without a hotel room or Masters Tournament tickets, Mr. Hopkins had a room at the La Quinta Inn on Washington Road and three leads on getting practice round passes for Monday and Tuesday.

``There's always somebody willing to sell their tickets, no matter what,'' Mr. Hopkins said. He came from Charlotte, N.C., a day earlier than his friends to scout for tickets, planning to pay no more than $100 for the $16 passes.

Getting into the Augusta National Golf Club hasn't been as easy for practice round fans the last two years since the club limited access with a pre-approved ticket lottery.

But vendors, hotel clerks, tourists and others said Sunday that practice round tickets are selling briskly, often for the $16 face value price. Tournament badges are selling for as much as $1,200 to $1,500.

Practice rounds start today and continue through the Par-3 Contest on Wednesday. The tournament begins Thursday and runs through Sunday.

``People are selling their tickets,'' said Whitney Kossuth, front desk manager at the La Quinta Inn. Augustans with spare tickets often call her hotel and leave their names and phone numbers for ticketless patrons to call back, she said.

``Most of them are usually trying to sell theirs for just the basic value,'' Ms. Kossuth said. ``Some people will give you a ridiculous amount - $100 - and those are the names and numbers you just throw away.''

Georgia law makes it illegal to sell tickets for more than $1 over the printed face value. It is not illegal to buy tickets for more than face value, no matter the price.

That's why a 25-year-old Atlantan has been set up on Washington Road across from the Augusta National since Wednesday, coolly reclined in a chair and holding a ``tickets needed'' sign. The man, who refused to give his name, buys tickets for a California-based company that sells packages - housing and badges - to the tournament. The company, which he also refused to name, is not authorized by the Augusta National to offer such packages.

``I'm buying everything,'' the man said. ``Without a doubt, this is the toughest ticket in sports. I've bought a few badges (this year), but they're tough to come by.''

The man has paid between $1,200 and $1,500 for the badges.

Also typically tough to come by are hotel rooms, Mr. Hopkins' luck notwithstanding.

For example, the Radisson Suites Inn's 176 rooms were booked last April for this year's tournament, and front desk clerks are already taking faxed requests for reservations for the 1997 tournament.

Radisson employees learned basic Japanese phrases and etiquette this year because many of the hotel's guests are Japanese executives.

Employee Lisa Benning was practicing Sunday afternoon, saying ``Ee ra' shai ma see'' - which means hello - from a cheat sheet.

```Sayonara' means goodbye,'' she said confidently.

That last one was easy.