Brian Bateman played with Todd Hamilton in Round 1. (Getty Images)

"You only have one first tee shot at Augusta National," he reminded himself. "So let's make it a good one."

Bateman definitely delivered. He split the fairway with his drive, launched an iron up the hill onto the green and two-putted from 40 feet for a solid par.

Bateman scored his ticket to the Masters when he birdied the 72nd hole to win the Buick Open by a shot. (Getty Images)

The Rookies

First-timers at Augusta National:

Brian Bateman Daniel Chopra (Sweden) Nick Dougherty (England) Richard Green (Australia) Anders Hansen (Denmark) Soren Hansen (Denmark) J.B. Holmes Martin Kaymer (Germany) Prayad Marksaeng (Thailand) Anders Romero (Argentina) John Senden (Australia) Heath Slocum Richard Sterne (South Africa) Michael Thompson-A Boo Weekley Nick Watney Johnson Wagner Bubba Watson Drew Weaver-A Wen Chong Liang (China)

The rest of the first round of the Masters, though, was even more memorable for the rookie, who birdied his next two holes and fired a 69 that left him one stroke off the lead.

"Yeah, this is a day to remember, obviously," Bateman said. "I started off kind of quiet and finished with a bang, and I'm in the Butler Cabin (being interviewed on CBS) before I know it. It's been a wild day."

Indeed. Bateman tried to avoid looking at the big white and green leaderboards that tower above the azaleas on this magnificent golf course that had its origins as a nursery. When he got to the 16th tee, though, he made a rookie mistake.

"I looked on 16 when they put my name up there for the first time," Bateman acknowledged. "I turned to my caddie and said, 'Wow, they are showing us some love.'

"You know what; it's early in the week. There's a lot of golf left. I was just trying to stay in the moment and really focus on the task at hand."

Given that goal, Bateman was particularly pleased with his deportment at Augusta National on Thursday. He and Todd Hamilton, the 2004 British Open champ, were playing as a twosome behind 15 groups of three.

"We had a lot of time on our hands," Bateman said. "That's what I'm the proudest of today is that with all of the time that I had in the fairways, I didn't second guess. My mind didn't wander and I didn't get ahead of myself and that was a good test for me today."

Bateman hit 13 of 18 greens in regulation and all but four of his fairways. He needed just 27 putts on those slick, undulating greens as he made six birdies -- one fewer than Lee Westwood, who also shot 69.

"It's a tremendous test, but I think it's as fair as any golf course we play," Bateman said. "It was a lot of fun today. I hit the ball well. My driver got away from me a few times to the right, but for the most part, I hit a lot of fairways. And I controlled my distance with my irons, especially on the par 5s with the wedges and made a couple of, you know, testy three and 4 and 5 footers that you have to make here."

The crowning moment came at the 18th hole when Bateman hit a 6-iron to 16 feet and rolled in the big breaker for a final birdie. The putt, which he called a "bonus," lifted him into a tie with Brandt Snedeker and Jim Furyk.

"Todd hit a great chip from the left pin high area and kind of gave me an idea of what the speed was going to be like," Bateman said. "Honestly, I was just trying to hit a good putt. I wasn't trying to make it.

"I knew it broke 12 to 14 inches to the right. ... So it was just a matter of picking the line and going with it and it was just a bonus that it went in."

Bateman's first two birdies came from 6 feet at No. 2 and tap-in distance at the third. He gave one of those back with a three-putt from 70 feet at the sixth hole and was also penalized by an errant tee shot at No. 7.

A 6-iron that landed 4 feet from the pin at the ninth hole gave Bateman some confidence back, though. He went on to play the back nine in 34 and vault up the leaderboard on a course he thinks is suited to his game.

Bateman, who had told himself he would never come to Augusta National except as a competitor, punched his ticket to the Masters when he picked up his first PGA TOUR victory at the Buick Open last year. He played a practice round last month to get a feel for the nuances of Alister Mackenzie's signature creation.

"The fairways weren't very tight and it was damp and chilly and the course was extremely long, but I was glad I came just to get the nerves out of the way, and seeing Magnolia Lane for the first time, coming through the gates," Bateman said.

The more Bateman sees of the course, though, the better he likes it -- and Thursday showed why.

"I feel like the golf course sets up well for me because my tendency off the tee is to draw the ball, so a lot of right to left shots," he said. "And I'm above average in length so that if I do make good contact with a driver, I'm hitting a shorter club than most guys.

"I think what surprised me most today was my putter. ... To have good speed on these greens, especially when you have a big breaker from 30 feet and you don't have too many 4 and 5 footers to save par, it takes a lot of the stress out of the day."

Just like a little talking-to on the first tee.