Realistic viewpoints

Yesterday, dozens of bespectacled fans gathered at the Boston Harbor Hotel instead, to see the first round of the legendary tournament in 3-D. Comcast Corp., the nation’s biggest cable provider, will present two hours of 3-D broadcasts from the Augusta National Golf Club each day of the tournament.

The broadcasts will be seen in the few homes already equipped with 3-D television sets, and at invitation-only events like the one in Boston yesterday. The company plans a series of public events to demonstrate 3-D television.

The Masters is the first major US sporting event to be telecast live in 3-D, just as the first wave of 3-D-compatible sets has arrived in retail stores.

“This is the kind of quality you see now from films like ‘Avatar’,’’ said Mark Hess, Comcast’s senior vice president for advanced business and technology development. “For the first time, that course literally comes alive for the consumer.’’

Golf buff Tony Loftis, a project manager for OwenCollier Partners LLC in Cambridge, said the viewing experience was much better than he had expected. “I was skeptical,’’ said Loftis, who had never seen 3-D television before. “But now I’m a believer. I will be buying a 3-D television set within the month.’’

But it is unclear how many consumers will join him. About 52 percent of all US households own high-definition TVs, according to the Consumer Electronics Association, or CEA. Will they pay $1,000 or more to upgrade their relatively new sets?

“The challenge for the manufacturers is to provide a compelling reason for you to consider replacing that beautiful 42-inch set that’s already sitting in your living room,’’ said Kurt Scherf, vice president of Parks Associates, a research firm in Dallas.

Then there is the inconvenience of having to wear special glasses to enjoy the 3-D effect. Those glasses can cost up to $150 a pair. Each TV will come with one or two pairs of glasses, but viewers will have to buy more for additional family members or for guests. And 3-D glasses that work with one brand of TV are incompatible with all other TV sets. The CEA is working with TV makers to develop a uniform standard, according to director of research Shawn Dubravac.

But so far, there aren’t many 3-D programs to watch, although Discovery Channel, which shows science documentaries, and sports cable network ESPN, are launching new channels devoted entirely to 3-D programs.

Dubravac said that because of the need to wear special glasses, 3-D viewing is best suited to special programs like big-budget movies and major sporting events.

“At this point, 3-D is going to be an event-driven experience, said Stephen Hackley, Comcast’s senior vice president for Greater Boston.

However, some viewers may not want to look at 3-D programs. A 2009 study by consulting firm PriceWaterhouseCoopers found that 20 percent of those who had attended a 3-D movie found the experience unpleasant. Another 5 percent had eye problems that made it impossible for them to perceive the 3-D effect.

The CEA predicts that Americans will buy a million 3-D sets this year and four million in 2011, regardless of limited programming and costly glasses. That is largely because the underlying technology is so cheap. The PriceWaterhouseCoopers study found that 3-D technology adds only about $20 to the cost of a new set.

“I think the manufacturers are simply going to build in that capability,’’ said Scherf, so that in a few years, all TVs will be 3-D-capable.

Hiawatha Bray can be reached at bray@globe.com.