Playing in The Masters is the dream for most golfers around the world but the idea of a PGA Tour player being so nervous they take to alcohol to calm the nerves, is quite the story.
Augusta National is very much a place of mystique and for the average amateur, it’s just somewhere you’re never going to get to play.
However, for the PGA Tour stars of now and yesteryear, playing The Masters is a very realistic possibility if you can piece your game together.
Over the years, we’ve seen some players have the biggest of meltdowns at Augusta – see Rory McIlroy – while we’ve also witnessed some greatness – see Tiger Woods.
But for one player back in the 1960s, the idea of teeing it up when he got to The Masters opening tee box was all a bit too much.
When Chi Chi Rodriguez drank a full bottle of rum before The 1961 Masters
While sports like darts are often related to the idea of having a quick drink here and there while playing, the idea of a golfer on the PGA Tour having some alcohol in the system is harder to comprehend.
However, going back to 1961, that’s exactly what we saw from the American golfer, Chi Chi Rodriguez.
After qualifying for his first Masters at the start of the 60s, Rodriguez would get himself so worked up that he took to drinking a bottle of rum before even teeing off.
In what are now infamous quotes from Rodriguez, he admitted it himself.
“I was so nervous I drank a bottle of rum before I teed off. I shot the happiest 83 of my life,” Rodriguez admitted.
With Rodriguez carding an 11 over 83 on that opening day, he went on to miss the cut – unsurprisingly – before returning to Augusta another 13 times.
Chi Chi Rodriguez’s record on the PGA Tour
In terms of players who have made their mark across the PGA Tour and the Champions Tour, Chi Chi Rodriguez is right up there.
Rodriguez played in a whopping 591 PGA Tour events, winning 8 times. He would then go on to play in 466 PGA Tour Champions events, boosting his win column by another 22.
He won golf tournaments on the pro scene across three decades, with wins coming in the 60s, 70s, and 80s.
In terms of The Masters, his best two finishes both came in the early 70s as Rodriguez finished at T10 in both 1970 and 1973.
Sadly, Rodriguez passed away in 2024 at the age of 88. He left a huge legacy on the game with his golf in general but his quote from the 61 Masters is right up there with one of the most fun admissions in golf history!
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