The Golf Thread

AUGUSTA, Ga. — At Augusta National, history wafts through the pines and across the fairways. And every so often, it drops right in your lap.

Standing in the fairway at the par-5 second hole, one stroke behind the leaders and 260 yards from the pin, Louis Oosthuizen unleashed one of the most magnificent shots in Masters history. His approach hit 28 yards short of the pin, then rolled as if down a gutter, and with one final rotation, dropped into the cup. It was the first albatross, a three-under-par shot, ever struck on 2, and only the fourth in the entire history of the Masters. And it vaulted Oosthuizen from back in the pack into a two-shot lead.

Smiling his characteristic gap-toothed grin, the one that's given him the nickname "Shrek," Oosthuizen then did the unthinkable: he tossed the potentially historic ball into the crowd.

The lucky recipient? A gentleman by the name of Wayne Mitchell, who hails from New Tripoli, Pennsylvania. He caught the ball and almost immediately socked it into his pocket. "My biggest fear was that I would drop it," he said later. "I'm not a souvenir chaser. But there were about 100 people behind me who would have gone for it."

Once Oosthuizen and the following pairing, leaders Peter Hanson and Phil Mickelson, finished out the second hole, a couple of club members in green jackets escorted Mitchell and his wife away from the second green. Mitchell took a moment to speak to the media, but made sure to keep the ball in his pocket. You never know, after all.

How much might the ball be worth? Green Jacket Auctions immediately offered $20,000 on Twitter if Oosthuizen wins. But Mitchell said he'd be "respectful" of the club and the tournament, whatever he decides to do with the ball.

Which brings up another point: should Oosthuizen win the Masters, the ball would become an integral part of Augusta National history. And if the club decided it wanted to display the ball, and asked for it? "I'd certainly listen," Mitchell said, his poker face firmly in place.

Asked if he would play the lottery on his way home, he smiled and said, "Why would I need to?"

norm wrote:

Cliffy6745 wrote:

This back 9 is going to be a lot of fun

I fucking love this shit

norm wrote:

For me, the greatest two hours in sports ...the back nine at augusta