Masters experience 'just a dream' for Wagner

If you needed to be reminded of how special the Masters is to golfers, the smile on Johnson Wagner's face at lunch time Friday told you.

Charlotte's new PGA Tour star appeared to be safely inside the cut-line at 2-over-par 146, having recovered from a potentially disastrous triple-bogey on the first hole.

For the second straight day, Wagner played the back nine well - he's 5-under par in two trips around the back side - and for the fifth straight day he was having a blast.

"I'm so fired up," said Wagner, who had family members drive from Richmond to Augusta with a brief overnight stop in Charlotte.

If Wagner can figure out how to handle the greens on the front side - he's had five 3-putts on the first three holes so far - he could make some noise over the weekend.

He made one serious mistake Friday - hitting his tee shot on the first hole so far to the right that a marshal told Wagner "I've never seen one over here before."

After making a seven, Wagner could have been playing himself home for the weekend, but he made a nice recovery.

"It's just a dream," Wagner said when asked if he's feeling worn down from the swirl his life has become since his victory in Houston on Sunday. "I'm not going to be tired this week."

-Ron Green Jr.