When major champion Gary Woodland walks on to the first tee of Augusta National on Thursday he will be checking where the security is as much as where he needs to land his opening drive.
The 2019 US Open champion has organised extra security to help him deal with the anxiety and stress that playing golf can cause him since he had brain surgery in 2023.
He announced last month that he had been dealing with post-traumatic stress disorder since the operation to remove part of a brain tumour, although the mental health condition was only diagnosed about a year ago.
In late March he won the Houston Open – his first victory since becoming a major champion seven years ago – to qualify for this week’s Masters.
With the added pressure of playing in a major and in front of larger crowds – Woodland will play the opening two rounds alongside world number one Scottie Scheffler and Scotland’s Robert MacIntyre – he is naturally taking a cautious approach this week and, just as at PGA Tour events, has organised extra security.
“The whole deal for me is it’s visual,” he said. “If I can see somebody, then I can remind myself that I’m safe constantly.
“So I have a good idea now where security is on every hole. The big deal for me, my caddie knows too, so he can constantly remind me.”
The 41-year-old American, who is playing in his 13th Masters tournament, never knows what might cause an episode.
“I don’t have control when this thing hits me, and it’s tough,” Woodland added.
“It can be a fan. It can be a walking scorer. It can be a camera guy running by me, just any startlement from behind me can trigger this pretty quickly.
“Knowing where the security is, is a constant reminder that I’m safe.”
Woodland said speaking publicly about his issues has brought him greater strength to deal with them.
“Speaking about it and how I feel afterwards made me a lot stronger,” he said.
“I didn’t know that releasing this battle was going to make me stronger, and it has done that. I feel a lot stronger now than I did three weeks ago.
“No matter how hard it is out here, I know I have someone I can talk to, that I can have security.”
He credited his victory at Houston with being more open about his issues – and seeking support from on-course security.
“I had a big battle on Friday of Houston. I got hypervigilant on the ninth hole and I battled the last 10 holes thinking people were trying to kill me,” Woodland said.
“I talked to tour security that night and I told them what I was going through, and every time I looked up on the weekend, my security team was behind me.
“Last year I didn’t talk to tour security. I fought this on my own. It was awful. Turning around and knowing that I’m safe, having somebody there with me, it’s the only reason why I won two weeks ago.”
