AUGUSTA, Ga. — The most coveted souvenir at the Masters is found in the garbage.

Grown men attending the event can occasionally be seen sifting through refuse bins to seize this prized jewel with the distinctive Masters logo.

If retrieved, it will be lovingly ushered off the grounds. Days later, it will assume a place of honor, perhaps featured next to heirloom porcelain in a glass dining room cabinet.

In Masters parlance, it is a keepsake unlike any other.

The treasure is a seven-inch-tall plastic cup used to serve $2 sodas or $4 beers to spectators during the Masters. Since it can be obtained only at Augusta National Golf Club during the annual tournament, it is zealously hoarded.

Just setting foot inside the stately gates of Augusta National can make fully grown adults behave strangely. Some kiss the ground, while others cry, overcome upon arriving at a place they have dreamed of visiting for decades. One man famously tried to steal a cup of sand and ended up in jail.