April 9: It’s every professional golfer’s dream to tee up at the Masters Tournament and South Africa’s Justin Harding is no different.

The world number 49 and two-time Asian Tour winner speaks to Joy Chakravarty, who pens his thoughts and insights into the South African from Augusta National this week.

Exactly one year ago, Justin Harding was packing his bags to play an event on the Sunshine Tour and watching the action unfold at Augusta National Golf Club.

Not in his wildest thought that week did he think he’d be driving down the Magnolia Lane one year later for a dream Masters debut.

Harding capped off his brilliant run of form by making it to the elite field in the first major of the year with two wins in Asia, two on the Sunshine Tour and one on the European Tour. That ties him with American Bryson DeChambeau as the player with most international wins in the last one year in the field.

And if not for the miraculous win by Canadian Corey Conners at Sunday’s Valero Texas Open, the 33-year-old Cape Town native would also have been the lowest ranked player on the Official Golf World Ranking from one year ago (excluding the past champions). Conners was 433rd in the OWGR during the 2018 Masters, while Harding was marginally better at 422.

“Oh man! That seems like a long time ago now,” said Harding. “I didn’t think I would be here back then and neither was it a goal for me. In fact, I really don’t like setting goals because if you don’t get them, you get frustrated and disappointed and put unnecessary pressure on yourself.

“I got in quite late into the Masters, so perhaps I haven’t got very excited about it yet. Even today, I felt very relaxed and composed. I am sure it will be very different when Thursday comes.

“I played the back nine today and I will play the front tomorrow and the back nine again on Wednesday and just ease into Thursday. I felt comfortable on the course. I don’t want to wear myself down playing silly amount of golf. In the end, it is just a case of executing the golf shots and making the putts.

It is always said that the Masters is not very kind to rookies, but Harding is hoping to prove that wrong. He is coming off a missed cut in the Valero Texas Open last week, but has continued his red-hot form from 2018. Apart from the win in Qatar, he also had a tied second place in Kenya and a fourth place in the ISPS Handa Vic Open.

“In my mind, I must have played this golf course a thousand times. There are many things that you do not realise watching on TV, but it is still a golf course which will reward good golf,” he explained.

“I missed the cut in San Antonio, but I putted well and that would be key here. Regardless, I think I am bringing in some good form into this week and let’s see what happens.

“I am playing well, but more importantly, I am in a good place mentally. I have been thinking well and I have kept my head on my shoulders a little bit longer during the course of my rounds.”

Harding arrived in Augusta on Sunday night and played the back nine of the golf course in the company of 2011 champion Charl Schwartzel, Branden Grace and Ernie Els’ nephew and the reigning British Amateur champion Jovan Rebula.

“It was beautiful out there. I have come here before as a spectator when I was with the Lamar University. I think it was a couple of years before Trevor (Immelman) won (2008). It was great to be here then, but being inside the ropes is obviously better,” said Harding, who won the Indonesian Open last year in his first start on the Asian Tour while playing on a sponsor’s exemption and followed it up by winning the Royal Cup.

“We had a South African match and we had lots of laughs. But Charl is a past champion here and this is Branden’s seventh Masters, so got to learn a few things from them as well.

“It’s still a golf course and it is as hard as any other golf course. Obviously, the difficulty is in the greens and hitting it in the right places and I suppose that’s why you try and pick everybody’s brains. Having said that, I spoke to Ernie last week when we played in San Antonio and funnily enough, him and Charl seem to differ on a couple of things.”

Harding said he was looking forward to defending his title at the Indonesian Open later in the year.

“The Asian Tour played a big part in me getting here and while my schedule will change a lot after I got my European Tour membership, I am going to try and play as many event as possible there and support the Tour as best as I can,” said Harding, who finished third in the Habitat for Humanity Standing last year.

“I am planning to defend my Indonesian Open title. And I will play a few more events towards the end of the year.”

Ends.