AUGUSTA, Ga. (AP) When Matt Parziale steps outside of this moment he’s living, a firefighter-turned-Masters golfer, he can understand why everyone finds it so compelling.

This is the sort of over-the-top script they usually come up with in Hollywood.

”It’s incredible,” Parziale said with a chuckle Monday, having just finished a practice round at Augusta National. ”But,” he quickly added, turning serious, ”I don’t see it that way. Because I’ve obviously lived it.”

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Yep, the 30-year-old from Station 1 in Brockton, Massachusetts is taking a break from his regular job, the one where he might put his life on the line most any day against some fearsome inferno, to tee off at the Masters.

Amen Corner can’t seem all that intimidating to someone whose real life involves wading through thick smoke, unable to see what’s right in front of their face, unsure if their next breath might be their last.

Not even Hollywood can do it justice.

”We’re pulling walls, ceilin..

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AUGUSTA, Ga. (AP) Wesley Bryan believes the golf ball is somewhere in his house a few miles from Augusta National.

It’s probably in a cabinet or a closet. It still might even have Billy Andrade’s pencil markings on it. The Former PGA Tour regular flipped the ball to Bryan a little more than two decades ago during the Masters. Bryan was attending the event with his dad and standing behind the No. 8 tee when Andrade singled him out.

It one of Bryan’s first and fondest memories of the hallowed grounds.

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”It went into the `my cool stuff drawer,”’ Bryan said Monday. ”Stuff that went into the `cool stuff drawer’ seemed to disappear over time when I moved a couple times and I first got married, so I’m not sure exactly what ended up happening to that golf ball. But I bet it’s somewhere. If I looked really hard, I could find it.”

If not, he should be able to able to replace it this week with better memories from golf’s first major of the year.

The 28-year-old Br..

AUGUSTA, Ga. (AP) The late Hootie Johnson fiercely defended the lengthening of Augusta National during his term as club chairman. The first overhaul added 285 yards after the 2001 Masters, and six more holes were lengthened after the 2005 Masters.

Johnson said the changes were to keep current with the modern game, and he leaned on his own experience.

But he wasn’t playing in March 2005 with a PGA Tour player. He was playing with teenagers.

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”I had a guest down here in March – 17 years old, about 5-foot-10, 160 pounds. He hit pitching wedges into 17 and 7,” Johnson said at the 2005 Masters. ”A lot had been written some years back that we were trying to Tiger-proof our golf course, and we are not worried about Tiger. We are worried about these 17-year-olds.”

That 17-year-old was George Bryan. Also playing that day was his 14-year-old brother, Wesley Bryan, who makes his Masters debut this week.

”I think it was probably more George-proofing at the time tha..

AUGUSTA, Ga. (AP) The roar sounded like Sunday at Augusta National.

This was Monday afternoon, and it was so sudden and thunderous that it reached the clubhouse. It was loud enough to startle spectators who wondered what they had missed. They had a pretty good idea who it was.

Tiger Woods is back at the Masters.

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Woods teed off with Justin Thomas and Fred Couples shortly before 3 p.m. when thousands of fans were making their way toward the exit. Thousands more crowded around the tee, lined the first fairway and followed him down the par-5 second hole. Some of them rushed over to the third hole to stake out a spot. Most of them surrounded the second green, and they were responsible for all the noise when Woods chipped in from behind the green.

About the only thing missing was a beam of light from the heavens.

Any talk about this being one of the most anticipated Masters in years starts with one player. Woods is at Augusta National for the first time sinc..

Dylan BuellIf you don't remember who Miles Mikolas is, allow us to refresh your memory. Back in December, we wrote about Mikolas, a struggling pitcher trying to make his way back to the MLB after spending three seasons in the bigs from 2012-2014. Mikolas went all the way to Japan to work his way back, eventually earning a two-year contract with the St. Louis Cardinals.
But the most interesting thing about Mikolas was his nickname, “the Lizard King”, given to him after he ate a live lizard in the bullpen during an Arizona Fall League game back in 2011. On Monday, the Lizard King got the start for the Cardinals, and gave us a much less gross reason to write about him. In his second at-bat of the season and just the sixth of his career, Mikolas finally got his first-career major league hit, and it was a DINGER:
https://twitter.com/MLBONFOX/status/980896344393920512
That thing was tattooed. Big time power for a pitcher, or any player for that matter. A no-doubt-about-it two-run shot t..

Move over, Frank Caliendo, and make way for Conor Moore. As the Masters approaches, the Irish impressionist whipped up a video in which he imitates 11 different golfers (plus Butch Harmon) in only two minutes. And we're not exaggerating when we say it's bloody brilliant. Check it out.
https://twitter.com/ConorSketches/status/980872408138698753
RELATED: 7 fun Masters prop bets that don't involve Tiger Woods
As you can see, Conor needs to work on the spelling of a couple of the golfers, but his impressions are so good — nice touch copying the headwear as well — we'll let it pass. In fact, it's impossible to pick a favorite. Is it the Sergio Garcia giggle? Or the Bubba Watson sob? Or the Tiger Woods non-answer answer? Or maybe Justin Rose using his standard inside voice when he gives an interview? Seriously, the man might possess more acting range than Daniel Day Lewis.
Well done, Conor. And if you're taking requests, we'd love a little Phil Mickelson ..

Jamie Squire(Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images)AUGUSTA, Ga.—It's Monday at the Masters, which means it's one of the best days to be at Augusta National. That's right, better than the tournament itself. And though I'm drunk on pimento cheese, I assure you it's a sober conviction. Here are eight reasons why attending a Masters practice day is better than a tournament round.
The course is the star
Save for possibly the Open Championship at St. Andrews, the Masters is the only tournament where the competition can be argued as secondary. No need to wax poetic on why; anyone who’s seen an image of Amen Corner can testify. However, once Thursday arrives, the focus tends to turn to the players (and rightfully so). The practice rounds allow Augusta National to shine without sharing the spotlight.
Staying with this theme…
It’s easier to maneuver around the course
During the tournament, patrons will set up shop at holes like the 12th, 15th and 16th…and not move for t..

RANCHO MIRAGE, Calif. (AP) Pernilla Lindberg plunged into Poppie’s Pond with her parents and fiance-caddie Daniel Taylor, celebrating her first professional victory in about the biggest way possible in women’s golf.

”I can’t believe that I can call myself a major champion,” Lindberg said.

It wasn’t easy.

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The 31-year-old Swede needed a major-record eight sudden-death holes over two days to finish off Inbee Park in the ANA Inspiration, ending it Monday morning with a 30-foot birdie putt on the par-4 10th.

”I just know I’m a grinder, and I just felt: `This is mine. I’m going to do this,”’ Lindberg said. ”I just knew I could, and I just kept fighting away. I couldn’t believe when that last putt went in.”

Park’s 20-footer to match stopped on the edge of the cup.

”The putt Pernilla made on the last was a champion’s putt,” Park said. ”I’m really happy for her. This one was not an easy major win for her, as well. I mean, eight-hole playoff, I’ve never done so..