Augusta omens

Augusta Chronicle columnist David Westin notes here that the new book "Freddie and Me: Life Lessons from Freddie Bennett, Augusta National's Legendary Caddie Master," by Tripp Bowden, features on its cover Angel Cabrera walking down the 10th fairway of Augusta National. The book was released on April 1, 10 days before Cabrera won the Masters on the 10th hole at Augusta National.

Westin further notes that on the eve of the Masters, he sat down with Kenny Perry in the players' dining area of the locker room for a brief interview.

"Perry mentioned the potential for 'mudballs' at Augusta National, which was still wet from rain the week before," Westin writes. "How ironic that five days later, Perry had the misfortune to get a mudball on his drive on No. 10, the second hole of sudden death with Cabrera.

"Perry never used it as an excuse, but admitted the mud affected the flight of his second shot, which went left of the green into no man's land. He hit his third shot well past the pin and missed the par putt. He never putted again as Cabrera closed out the victory with a two-putt par."

-- John Strege