Guy in Pink, Man on Fire: Rickie Fowler Paves His way to the Masters Tournament

On his way to his Masters Tournament at age 22, Rickie Fowler debuted stardom on the field of golf this year after he bagged the coveted tour Rookie of the Year honors in 2010. A native of Murietta, California, Fowler accomplished 11 top-10 goals in 38 professional starts.

Sharing his thoughts, Fowler beams and basking at the glory that the game gave him:

“I got my first look at Augusta National and so many people have asked about my reaction. I say, 'It's Augusta.' It's great, it's a special place, it's something I've dreamed about, being in the Tournament. I didn't want to go until I was in the Masters Tournament, and now I am, so like I say, it's a dream come true.”

He played with Hunter Mahan on Monday and Steve Marino the following morning, alongside Charley Hoffman and Phil Mickelson. Fowler ponders on a lot of first impressions of the course, one of which is the elevation changes. Surprisingly, he found the elevations a bit crazy, saying that the bumps can be seen from the clubhouse, and how the holes are quite close together.

“The course was in great shape, although it was a little cold and wet on Monday morning, so it played long. We waited for a while. So while I was waiting to play Monday, I had breakfast, and I kept thinking how great it is knowing that I'm playing in the Tournament. Tiger and Arjun Atwal were there - they flew up together, and Phil and I flew up together. It was cool to be in the same room, hanging out with Phil and Tiger. I was Ryder Cup teammates with them, buddies with them, and now I was hanging around with those two guys at Augusta. Kind of cool.” He added with genuine enthusiasm.

It’s one of his greatest dreams to play in the Masters, but he said it did not overwhelmed him for sure. Just like the Ryder Cup which he played with much ado in two US Opens as amateur. Playing the Masters is something he only at first dreamt about. Glowing with pride at his accomplishment, Fowler plays Sunday morning on Tournament week, so don’t forget to watch if on Golf Masters.