By Frank Pingue
AUGUSTA, Georgia (Reuters) – As Bernhard Langer gets ready to make his final Masters start this week the German could not help but take time to reflect on his journey from humble beginnings to becoming twice champion at Augusta National Golf Club.
The 67-year-old Langer will make his 41st Masters start on Thursday, a feat he never imagined in his wildest childhood dreams, especially considering he did not even know about the tournament at the time.
“I don’t recall the exact day or year when I heard about the Masters Tournament, but it was certainly not easy,” Langer told a press conference on Monday during which his voice broke on several occasions.
“We didn’t even have a television until I was about 12 years old. My dad couldn’t afford one. Then it only had three channels. I’m sure the Masters wasn’t on one of those three channels.”
Langer made his Masters debut in 1982 as Germany’s first participant in the tournament and his triumphs in 1985 and 1993 are what he calls the two most important wins of a career which earned him a spot in the World Golf Hall of Fame.
Speaking after a short video showing his Masters highlight played, Langer called his golf career an “incredible journey” for someone born in a village of about 800 people.
“Golf was nothing in Germany,” said Langer. “I had no idea when I turned pro what I was going to be facing. I had no role model. I had no one to compare myself with. I was just the one starting something that nobody has ever done before in Germany.”
The seemingly ageless Langer’s original idea was to play his final Masters last year but that plan was cruelly dashed after he suffered a torn Achilles tendon.
Langer won his first Green Jacket in 1985 when he rallied from a four-stroke deficit in the final round and birdied four of the last seven holes to beat Curtis Strange, Seve Ballesteros and Raymond Floyd by two shots.
He triumphed at Augusta National eight years later when he made a decisive eagle on the 13th and cruised to a four-stroke victory over Chip Beck.
Although Langer is at peace with his decision to call time on his Masters career, he admitted that no amount of preparation will make his last walk up the 18th fairway any less emotional.
“If it doesn’t hit me earlier on, it will definitely hit me on 18, I know that,” said Langer.
“Hopefully, I can control myself until the 18th, but there’s no guarantees.”
(Reporting by Frank Pingue, editing by Ed Osmond)
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