David, we lost a great icon in Atlanta and the South today. Actually, Furman retired officially in 2009, and was living in St. Simons. I can't verify that he has covered the most Masters in history (Dan Jenkins might have that honor), but I know he started covering the tournament in the early-to-mid 50s.
I got my first job in journalism at the AJC -- I was a 25-year-old small fish in a very big pond. Even though I was pretty intimidated by my surroundings, I will never forget how nice Furman was to me. Not we crossed paths very much, as I was a copy editor on the sports desk and he wasn't in the Atlanta office too much. But, he would always call me into his office and pull out old Masters parings sheets from the 50s and early 60s, still with his notes on some of them! He would talk about how different it was on the "tour" back then and how the media really became friends and travelling companions with the professionals. I could go on, but for the time that I knew him at the AJC, he was very generous with his time, and was a walking encyclopedia of all things Masters (and sports) related.
He knew Bobby Jones personally and interviewed him once in the latter stages of Jones's life. Upon hearing of Jones's condition, Bisher asked him if there was any cure for it. "Yes, he said, Death." Furman told me about that interview one day and it still never ceases to give me chills.
Sorry for the ramble, but he was a very good man to know and work with.
-- Rob