Erik Compton had all but given up on his dream of playing in the Masters after two heart transplants, but the 35-year-old American will make an emotional Augusta National debut Thursday.
Compton shared second place in last year’s US Open at Pinehurst behind Germany’s Martin Kaymer to qualify and said Monday after a practice round with Jim Furyk that he is handling the thrill well and starting to focus on the test before him.
“It’s kind of hard to believe with everything I’ve gone through. There are times when I never thought I would ever play in the Masters,” Compton said.
“Definitely been an a roller coaster of emotions. It was a bit difficult to watch so many years and think, ‘I’m never going to play in the Masters.’ So it’s going to be weird not watching the Masters this year.”
Compton has been viewing on television since he was eight, before his first transplant in 1992 at age 12 or the second one in 2008 due to cardiomyopathy, an inflamed heart muscle that cannot pump adequately.
Compton ranks 117th in the world, six spots behind 14-time major champion Tiger Woods, and knows his trip to Augusta National could be a once in a lifetime achievement.
“It’s hard, but it’s also a great thing,” Compton said. “I’m a competitor and a sports person and I’m also the recipient of two transplants. So when you put them together, it does make a little bit of spaghetti in my mind sometimes.
“But I’ll take it. I’m here at the Masters and that’s a great thing. I used golf as a means to maybe put some of the tough stuff that’s happened to me in the past. Golf has been very therapeutic for me over the years.”
Nothing was quite the same as the delight of driving down Magnolia Lane to the Masters clubhouse.
“It’s every boyhood’s dream to play in the Masters. It’s the mecca of golf,” Compton said.
“All the expectations are already met. When you drive in to registering, getting to the first tee, seeing all the fans and appreciate the course — it’s almost like Disney World for a golfer, like it’s too perfect.”
The undulating greens and epic pine trees offer a unique challenge to any first-time player, much less one who makes a point of showing transplant recipients how much is possible.
“I saw my dad on the third hole. He was kind of emotional,” Compton said. “It’s a real treat just to play. And then you need to focus on having a great week and playing good golf.
“I really enjoy the pressures that majors bring to the game. Even though I haven’t had some of the success that some other people have had, I’ve been playing this game long enough to know how to handle pressure. Venues like this just make the pressure that much greater.”