It is Jacob Bridgeman's first Master's at Augusta National, and the Clemson University product is not letting the storied legacy of the golf course and its heroes distract him.

During his Monday practice round, when discussing Phil Mickelson's non-participation in the tournament this year, the young player made some interesting comments.

Commenting on the veteran golfer's exclusion, Bridgeman said, "I've only played two tournaments in my life that Phil has been in, the PGA and the Open last year, so not a big change for me."

That remark came after his nine-hole tour, during which Bridgeman realized that he hardly knew anything about the particular field exclusions.

When specifically asked whether it would be odd not to see the veteran around the grounds this week, Bridgeman showed his lack of awareness, saying, "Yeah, I didn't know that, actually."

The rookie then added that the presence or absence of any player makes no difference to his performance in the tournament.

He further commented that it might be somewhat strange for patrons outside the ropes, but it does not make any difference to him.

Rookie Approach to Tiger Woods and Augusta Traditions

Even though Jacob Bridgeman does not seem to care about Mickelson's absence, he is extremely sentimental about Tiger Woods, who has always been his greatest golfing idol since childhood.

The rookie highlighted the reverence that all the players have towards Tiger by saying, "I think everybody has a very soft heart for Tiger. He's been the guy for our game that's changed everything the most."

Bridgeman was extremely thankful for the changes Woods had brought to the professional domain and for raising tournament purses owing to his massive popularity. According to him, the whole crowd wants the best for the legend in the upcoming tournament.

For the moment, Bridgeman is completely focused on his own preparations. He mentioned, "The greens are quite a bit different from yesterday and today, and I think that will continue to be the trend, getting faster, getting firmer."

Even though the player is nervous about his debut, he seems ready to compete within the ropes. He has kept himself in the right mindset, just as he does in any other regular tournament on tour.

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Written by

Abhishek Sharma

Edited by

Siddharth Rawat