Every year we hear about dreams coming true for rookie Masters participants. Practice rounds with legends. Awe about the whole scene. Possibly some crystal for an eagle.
But who had the worst start ever? Greg Chalmers has raised his hand as a contender.
The hilarious Australian offers a strong case, as he beaned two Augusta National patrons on the opening hole, one to the head on the opening drive, another with a punch to the shoulder on his second-ever Masters swing.
The Greggie was 27 in his first go-round at Augusta National, set to tee off in the opening round at 8:30 a.m. soon after the honorary group of Byron Nelson and Sam Snead. Chalmers had multiple professional wins in Australia at that point, but the nerves were understandably in play.
As the left-hander tells it, “the enormity of the event was dawning on me as I stood over the ball on that tee shot,” which he caught a bit on the heel, the ball rifling left toward the rope line.
He tells the story better than we can:
You are not going to believe what happened the first time I played #themasters
It was in 2001 and my 1st round tee time was around 8:30 and I was a little nervous. I just watched Byron Nelson and Sam Snead hit off only a few minutes prior and the enormity of the event was… pic.twitter.com/pUdv7hyUr3
— Greg Chalmers (@GregChalmersPGA) April 9, 2024
Chalmers joined the PGA Tour in 1999, and he went on to win the 2016 Barracuda Championship. In recent months he has qualified for three PGA Tour Champions events and has notched two top-10 efforts in those starts. He’s one of the funniest voices on Golf Twitter, so mash that follow button.