Big dreams for the kid from Augusta

Posted 5:49PM on Monday 8th April 2002 ( 23 years ago )

AUGUSTA - Charles Howell The Third has been dreaming about playing in the Masters since he first picked up a club. What makes him different from other rookies at Augusta National is that he never dreamed of anything else. He didn't have other hobbies. Once his father joined Augusta Country Club, the course next door to the Masters and just five miles from his house, Howell went to school, played golf and worked out. On weekends, he played golf and worked out. His parents even had to make him go to the senior prom. At Oklahoma State, where Howell won the 2000 NCAA championship as a junior, he married the first girl he kissed, Heather Myers of Kingfisher, Oklahoma. Howell brought her to Augusta National last April, but they stayed for only an hour. Howell was upset he wasn't playing, and he vowed never to return until he had an invitation to play. The formal invitation arrived in the mail shortly before Christmas, capping an amazing run for a 22-year-old player touted as the best young star on the PGA Tour. At this time last year, Howell wasn't even a PGA Tour member and had to rely on sponsors' exemptions to get into tournaments. He still managed to win more than $1.5 million to earn his card and finish Number 45 in the world ranking. Desperate to play in the Masters, Howell traveled halfway around the world to the Australian Open during Thanksgiving week to make sure he was in the world's top 50 at year's end. Every time he played in the U.S. Amateur, he reminded himself that the finalists are invited to Augusta National. The closest he came was in 1996, when he lost to Tiger Woods in the quarterfinals as a 17-year-old. The last player who won the Masters in his debut was Fuzzy Zoeller in 1979, the year Howell was born. Then again, Howell is hardly a rookie, having played the course just about every May with employees or caddies. Being the hometown player, he figures to be one of the most popular players in the 89-man field.

http://accesswdun.com/article/2002/4/196319