Couple refuse offer from uber-rich neighbour | WATCH - Property News AU/NZ | propertynoise.co.nz & propertynoise.com.au

PHOTO: Augusta National Golf Club

This elderly duo continue to reject offers more than triple the price of their house after seeing the rest of their neighbourhood demolished.

The Augusta National Golf Club where the Masters Tournament takes place each year has a particular way of getting what it wants — buying up most of the land and houses that once surrounded its borders.

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But one Georgia family has put its foot down and said they’re not leaving — even if it means giving up millions of dollars to do so.

In the last decade, an entire neighbourhood that once stood across from the golf club has now been turned into a free parking lot.

The club — which generated more than $140 million for this year’s tournament won by Scottie Scheffler — spent more than $40 million to bulldoze it.

Now, all that remains is the modest three-bedroom, two-bathroom house at 1112 Stanley Road in the city of Augusta that Herman and Elizabeth Thacker built in 1959.

In a 2016 interview with NJ.com, the two revealed that their 1900-square-foot home is where they hoped to live out their final days.

“We really don’t want to go,” Elizabeth said.

“Money ain’t everything,” Herman added.

Herman and Elizabeth Thacker in front of their home in Augusta, Ga., in April 2016. Picture: @talkinggolf

The proximity of the Thacker house to the Augusta National Golf Club. Picture: Google Maps

And, indeed, it seems Herman did take his final breaths in the home he lived in for more than 65 years.

Herman, an avid golf fan himself, passed away in 2019 at 86 years old. His wife of 64 years remains in the home today.

Once a year, their home is surrounded by cars for the big golf spectacle, which has taken place annually since 1934.

Whenever a representative from Augusta National stopped by to make an offer, up to $1 million, the two always invited him inside.

“He’ll come by here every so often and he’ll say, ‘Just want to let you know we’re still interested in your property’,” Herman said at the time. “And we’ll tell him the same thing again.”

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The house is estimated to be worth $300,000 today.

The couple raised their two children in the home. Since then, their family has expanded to include five grandchildren and five great-grandchildren. When the holidays come, they still find a way to pack everybody inside.

Herman and Elizabeth Thacker built the home in 1953. Picture: Google Maps

One of their grandchildren is now a professional golfer and is a PGA Tour member. Scott Brown has yet to qualify for the Masters.

Meanwhile, the Thackers owned a smaller house across the street that they did eventually sell for $1.2 million.

“They called us over there the first time and made us an offer,” Herman said. “I asked him, ‘Is that your bottom line?” He said, ‘Yeah.’ I said, ‘Well, we’ll see you then,’ and we got up and walked out. It wasn’t long before he was calling back over here, wanting to know if he could come talk to us again.”

After the sale closed, the house — and everything in it — were gone within a week.

In the past 20 years, overall, the club has spent more than $200 million buying more than 100 properties that span a colossal 270 acres, according to the Wall Street Journal.

The Post has reached out to the North August Chamber of Commerce, which oversees the tournament, for comment.

This article was originally published by the New York Post and reproduced with permission