As first reported by The Commercial Appeal
April 10, 2010
Masters spotlight big enough for others
By Geoff Calkins
AUGUSTA, Ga. -- Brad Benjamin finished his round, signed his
scorecard, then walked to meet a cluster of reporters.
His eyes were rimmed red, though it was hard to tell why. This golf
course is yellow with pollen.
He answered a question about a particular shot, but words seemed to
be a struggle.
"Choking back a few tears?" a reporter asked.
And then he couldn't choke them back any longer. They came in a rush,
unstoppable. Benjamin bent his head, to hide them. He shook, quietly. A
solid minute passed. The Masters media representative offered a towel.
Another minute passed. Still more tears.
"I'm not going to be able to talk," Benjamin said, finally.
The media representative guided him away. Benjamin found Steve
Benjamin, his father. They hugged, long and hard.
"It's OK," said Steve. "You'll be back here."
Tiger Woods shot a 70 Friday to put himself two shots off the lead.
There, are you happy now?
That's the Tiger news. He's a fabulous golfer. It is otherworldly,
what he's been able to do this week. He appears to be poised to win the
thing.
But Friday was not about Tiger Woods. Friday was about the other,
smaller stories, that get lost in the man's ever-widening shadow.
Tom Watson made the cut at age 60 and sounded ticked about it.
Seriously, the man was peeved.
"I'm disappointed," he said.
All around him, older golfers were falling, reminded by this golf
course that they can no longer handle its beautiful savagery. Ian
Woosnam shot an 83. Sandy Lyle shot an 86.
"I felt like I was playing with a lead ball. You hit it and it goes,
'pffffffft." Woosnam said. "It's like the course says, 'Right, I'm going
to really kill you.' "
Meanwhile, Watson just sails along, a wonder in a V-neck sweater.
He's 3-under for the tournament with no thoughts of going away.
"I have thoughts of playing my butt off," he said.
Which may be the only thing he has in common with Matteo Manassero
who, at 16, is exactly 44 years younger than Watson. Manassero, from
Italy, is the youngest person to ever qualify for the Masters. When his
car pulled down Magnolia Lane the first time, someone else had to do the
driving.
Manassero was in the back seat, peering out the window. He doesn't
yet have his license.
"I always watched and dream about the Masters," he said.
Always?
"Since I was 14," he said, which was exactly two years ago.
But like Watson, Manassero made the cut. Not bad for a kid who
wouldn't look out of place at White Station Middle School.
"I like old music, like U2," he said.
Golfing with the oldies?
As for Benjamin, he finally composed himself enough to talk with
reporters. He asked if he could do it under the big oak. Twenty minutes
after his first try, he still struggled to get the words out.
No, he wasn't happy with the way he finished his round. He bogeyed
three of his last four holes to miss the cut with a 77.
But that's not why Benjamin was crying. He was crying from the
emotion of it all. A year ago, he was a senior at Memphis, a good but
not exceptional college golfer. Three years before that, as a freshman
at Memphis, he had been used in only two tournaments.
And now he was at Augusta. Now he was in this astonishingly beautiful
place, competing with these magnificent golfers, soaking in moments
only a few get to experience.
"It has nothing to do with failure or success," he said, explaining
the tears. "It's just that ..." Here he stopped, to collect himself
again.
"It's just a dream come true," he said. "You just think of all the
people who helped get you here."
So, no, this tournament isn't all about a single controversial
golfer. It's about a 60-year-older champion and a 16-year-old
phenomenon, it's about an amateur from Memphis and his freshman-roommate
caddy, it's about wondrous days and big dreams and the people who help
you reach them.
"I wish it didn't have to end," Benjamin said.
Next time, maybe it won't have to.
To reach Geoff Calkins, call 529-2364 or e-mail calkins@commercialappeal.com.
