Watch out for the rookies!

By the time you get to read this, my first round would have been over and things would be a little clearer as to how my debut at the Augusta Masters is going to pan out. It will be close to midnight in India when I finish the first round.

Even though there has been a lot of hype and excitement -- no Indian has teed up here since 2011 when Arjun (Atwal) did and Jeev (Milkha Singh) did three times before that in 2007-2008-2009 -- I have tried to stay calm and go about my paces and study the course as I would for any event. Sure there are big events and then there are Majors and then there is the Masters.

I have spent most of my time either at the course at Augusta National or at the ‘home’ with my family and friends around me. Again this is the norm at most events for us -- we stay at hotels mostly, but in the US and when you are here for big events, a home is a better option with all facilities available.

I have had to attend a few functions, have been meeting my sponsors, and that has given me a break here and there and rest has been spent focusing on the task at hand.

After two days of on-course practice with Vijay Singh, Patrick Reed and a very helpful chat with Sir Nick Faldo, it was time for the traditional Par-3 contest. It is something every Masters hopeful hears of and looks forward to taking part in it -- though there is also the saying that anyone who wins the Par-3 never wins the Masters. Well, I am safe, as I did not win the Par-3!

The highlight of the day was of course Jack Nicklaus’ ace as he played alongside Gary Player and Ben Crenshaw, the two-time former champion, who is playing his 44th and last Masters.

Now it is time for the main event and predicting the winner is a hazardous job and I will leave that to others. It could be anyone and with Tiger Woods back after a year’s gap, the excitement is great and Rory McIlroy is attempting a career slam.
Bubba Watson is looking for a third Masters in four years -- only Nicklaus has done that before -- and the likes of Adam Scott, Phil Mickelson, Jordan Spieth and so many others will be looking to contend on Sunday.

And yes, I was also told that the last time a Masters rookie won the Green Jacket was in 1979 when Fuzzy Zoeller triumphed. And this time around there are 20 first-timers, including yours truly. So watch out!

Coming back to how things have panned out for me over the last three months, I have been asked a few times this week and even before if I had to make a lot of new plans and changes in my schedule. Yes, after winning twice (Malaysian and Hero Indian Open) in three weeks, of course I had to. But honestly, even when I had made my European Tour card in November, I had half-prepared myself for something like this. I knew a couple of good results, a break through on European Tour could push me up. But what I didn’t expect was it to happen so soon.

It is great that I moved into the top-50 so early in the year and that gave me a lot of opportunities to get into Majors and WGC. That was a big one. And, which professional wouldn’t want to change plans if it meant playing Majors! So, I am in a happy place and suddenly a whole lot of new opportunities have opened up.

As for my play in the run-up, I am not disappointed as such. I played well at Houston, it’s just that I didn’t hole the putts.