As a young player Tommy Fleetwood had dreams of taking on Amen Corner at the Masters – now he dreams of winning a Green Jacket.
The Englishman made his Masters debut in 2017 – the same year he won the Harry Vardon Trophy – and while he missed the cut on that occasion, he has played the weekend at every Masters since.
That 2017 edition was not his first trip to Augusta National, however, as in 2014 - already a DP World Tour winner and en route to a 19th-placed finish on the Race to Dubai - he attended as a patron.
Despite his status as a rising star in the game at that point, he revealed he used that trip as a motivating factor tp climb to his current lofty status in the international game.
“I came to watch in 2014 for a couple of days,” he said. “I managed to get a ticket and I came to watch.
“I know a lot of people would say the first time they want to come to Augusta is when they would be playing in the Masters, but for me... I was a young player dreaming of playing in the Masters and I felt like it would be part motivation for me and part like I would get to see it before I came.
“I remember walking around and you get to the back of the 12th tee, and that's as far as you can go as a patron, can't go any further. And I'm watching these players go play and walk over the bridge to 13 and then teeing off on 13, and I was like, ‘I want to go there. That's where I want to be’.
“I think that became my thing about playing in the Masters. When I play, I get to go and get to the 12th green and the 13th tee. So that was sort of my biggest motivation in a way. I never even contemplated at the time winning it.
“It's just I always think of course we dream of winning the Masters, like we do. I can picture that for sure, but it genuinely was more about like playing the 12th and 13th hole than anything else.”
It is safe to say that Fleetwood’s ambitions have become loftier since, with another seven DP World Tour wins, that Race to Dubai triumph, a FedEx Cup and 12 points in four Ryder Cups added to his CV.
You always know that how much you want it is there in the background. So I try to let that be a thing and then just focus on what I'm doing at the time.
He comes down Magnolia Lane as the World Number Four and while it would be impossible to ever call Fleetwood arrogant, he is clearly comfortable with the expectations that now come with his status.
“It would be very special,” he said of slipping on the Green Jacket. “There's no doubt for everybody that plays the game, winning a Masters, whether it be walking up the 18th, holing a putt on the 18th green, the moment you have the Jacket put upon you - you can rattle them off.
“I think it's on such a mantelpiece in people's career and how they view it, and it's so easy to create like those moments in your mind because we watch it every year.
“We've watched some of the best shots of all time here on the back nine of Augusta over the last however many years, and you can relate to that because you kind of feel like you know it. Whether you've played here or not, you feel like you know so much about it.
“It would be unbelievably special. You always know that how much you want it is there in the background. So I try to let that be a thing and then just focus on what I'm doing at the time.
“I would love to be there late on Sunday in with a chance. Those juices flowing on the back nine of Augusta. In 2024 I was very much on the outskirts. That's the best finish I've had, I finished third, but Scottie (Scheffler) was a long way in front. I was never really in contention. I was having a great week and I wanted to finish as strong as I could.
“But I've never had that joy yet of playing on the back nine with a chance to win the Masters. Yeah, I'd really love that so much.”
Whether it be watching as a patron and dreaming of playing or playing and dreaming of contending, for Fleetwood much of the magic of the Masters seems to stem from Amen Corner.
The 11th, 12th and 13th are probably the most famous stretch of holes in world golf and Fleetwood admits it is a “special” place to be.
“It's probably one of the most special places in golf,” he said. “I think everybody just has such a respect for playing it and a joy for it. There's an absolute truth in it. It's won and lost a lot of tournaments for a lot of people, Amen Corner.
The 11th, 12th and 13th are probably the most famous stretch of holes in world golf and Fleetwood admits it is a “special” place to be.
“It's probably one of the most special places in golf,” he said. “I think everybody just has such a respect for playing it and a joy for it. There's an absolute truth in it. It's won and lost a lot of tournaments for a lot of people, Amen Corner.
“You don't often get to places and associate just a certain part of a golf course like having its own little piece. I guess for a lot of people front nine, back nine. I play a lot of three-hole matches with myself. And of course there are stretches of golf at places that are different.
“But to have like a little piece, you look back at your own and you go, well, this is what I did at Amen Corner, and I played Amen Corner in this way. So that's pretty unique.
“I think overall, just looking at the tournament and going, it's some of the best holes in golf and such a special place.”
