Rafa Nadal, legend of Spanish and world sport, has never hidden his passion for golf. Although the sport in which he triumphed was tennis, it has not been unusual to see him, especially in recent years, with clubs in hand, even competing in some amateur competitions. It is therefore understandable that he followed closely what happened last April at Augusta National, in the conclusion of a Masters that, as he himself confessed in an interview, he experienced with special emotion.
The Mallorcan knows better than anyone how difficult it is for sports stars to achieve great feats. So he said he felt “very emotional” when Rory McIlroy, after so many attempts, finally won the famous Green Jacket with which he completed a Grand Slam that Rafa has in tennis. “Honestly, I was crying at home when he won. It moved me a lot, I have suffered a lot with him,” he told Amanda Davies on CNN about the Northern Irishman’s triumph at Augusta.
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“Honestly, I always had the confidence that he would achieve it because, firstly, he deserved it. And I always think that, in some way, there is justice. Really, I think he probably knew before the round that he was going to go through all those pressure moments and that the start would be difficult. But I think he handled the first hole very well, which was very difficult. I think he was missing something in the first few holes, with a couple of drivers that ended up in the bunker by very little. But then he started to play well.”
“I think he made a risky shot on the 11th. He was lucky there. But then again, the mistake on the 13th, for me, was the most difficult moment of the round,” analysed Nadal, making it clear that he didn’t miss a detail of that historic Sunday at Augusta National. And questioned about that, about his level of analysis, as if it were a tennis match, he explained: “Well, yes, because I know the Augusta golf course very well. I’ve seen it. I love golf. I love Rory, honestly. And I admire him as an athlete and as a person. I really wanted him to win. So I watched every shot. And yes, in the end, it was very, very emotional. I was very, very happy.”
