While Jose Luis Ballester made an inspiring debut at the Masters Tournament, it did not get off to the best of starts. Fans were disappointed since the first round was relatively boring. It was a pretty bizarre phenomenon that stopped traffic and sent fans at Augusta National into a raucous standing ovation on Thursday. During his round, Ballester made a splash, urinating in Rae’s Creek, a surreal moment during Ballester’s trip down the rough road of tough play.
After battling through the front nine, Ballester found himself in a precarious position. He regrouped and made a stunning recovery to improve his front side play dramatically over the back nine. Impressively, he wasn’t flummoxed by his fortune, making par on each of his last six for a respectable four-over 76. With that total, he tied for 73rd place. At the same time, Justin Rose went all “big dog” on the leaderboard with a stout 65.
A Sudden Call of Nature
As Ballester made his rounds, he felt a more immediate call of nature that needed answering. But all at once, he sensed a pause in the proceedings. It started when his playing partner, Justin Thomas, had a bit of a fit on the 13th green. Now was that moment, Ballester realized, and this was the perfect opportunity in his mind.
“It was not embarrassing at all for me,” – Jose Luis Ballester
By the enthusiastic applause he got from the gallery, a lot of those in attendance seemed to think he was joking. The unfiltered and impromptu vibe of the whole moment came across spectacularly to the thousands and thousands of fans witness to it. Ballester commented on this unexpected reception, stating, “Probably one of the claps that I really got today real loud, so that was kind of funny.”
No Regrets Over the Incident
For Ballester, it was very validating, because he knew what he had been doing was right. He downplayed fears of retaliation from government leaders. He made clear just how little he cared about the incident, promising that he would do it again if it came to that.
“If I had to do it again, I would do it again.” – Jose Luis Ballester
Ballester’s road to the Masters has been quite remarkable. He earned his spot in this exclusive field by winning last year’s U.S. Amateur. When he was paired up with defending champion Scottie Scheffler, that made the pairing even more exhilarating. This would be his first trip into one of golf’s most hallowed events.
Looking Ahead
Jose Luis Ballester, meanwhile, is all-in on his first Masters appearance. He remains unshaken by the competition on the course, or surprises that arise. His performance didn’t exactly light the world on fire from the outset. His candor and humor in describing the creek incident certainly left a lasting impact on the audience.
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