The last time the Argentine Ángel Cabrera played the Masters Tournament was in 2019. Since then, he has spent much more time in a prison cell than on a golf course. Now he returns to the Georgia coliseum, where he won in 2009, and does so as the brand-new champion of the PGA Tour Champions, after winning the James Hardie in Florida this Sunday.
Cabrera entered prison in June 2021. He was convicted of coercion, minor injuries, threats, and disobedience to authority in the context of domestic violence and was in jail until August 2023. “I slept on pieces of cloth on a bed that was basically made of cement. I was locked up with another person,” he recounted about his time in the Plácido de Sá Carvalho prison in Rio de Janeiro. He then went to Bouwer prison in Córdoba and finished his sentence at the Colonia Abierta Monte Cristo, a model prison located 20 kilometres from the capital of Córdoba.
In a recent interview with the British media Daily Mail, the Argentine stated, “I can tell you that the most important thing I feel right now is the second chance, the opportunity to get back on the right track,” he reflected. And he added: “Right now, I am fine. But I regret everything I did wrong in the past. It also frustrates me to have let very important years of my life pass by. I made mistakes. It’s one of the worst things that can happen to a human being, not having freedom. The lack of freedom is something really difficult, really hard. And, on the other hand, I can say that the most important thing I feel right now is the second chance, the opportunity to get back on the right path.”
In this second chance, golf has once again played a key role. He returned to competition at the Abierto el Litoral at the end of 2023. His idea was to play the Masters in 2024, but the United States did not grant him the visa in time to travel, and he was left behind. With those bureaucratic issues resolved, Cabrera is not only going to return to the Augusta National this week, but he is also playing the PGA Tour Champions.
Just this Sunday, he won the James Hardie Pro Football Hall of Fame Invitational, his first victory on the over-50s circuit in the United States. It was played on the The Old Course at Broken Sound in Florida. He won with a two-stroke lead over K.J. Choi and three over Retief Goosen. Thus, Cabrera not only returns to the Masters but does so with a trophy in hand. Let’s remember that the Argentine also won the US Open in 2007.
“What comes now with the Masters is another level, but everything helps and serves, especially arriving hitting the ball well. My goal is to play the entire Champions circuit. I am very happy. It’s very gratifying. I thought something like this might come sooner or later, but I didn’t expect it to be so soon,” he said yesterday after finishing the tournament, as always in Spanish and with the help of a translator for English.
On the other hand, Miguel Ángel Jiménez had another great week in the Champions. He finished in sixth position, five top 10s in six tournaments, and remains the leader of the Charles Schwab Cup ranking.
