Huber Blog: A long way from Mississippi, Katrina for Wilson

TNT's Emmy Award-winning essayist Jim Huber is in Augusta for the Masters, and each day he will report on what he saw, heard and felt at storied Augusta National Golf Club. This is his fourth edition.

By Jim Huber, Special to PGA.com

AUGUSTA, Ga. -- Thursday dawned glorious, almost in honor of the opening round of the Masters. And as the field warmed to the task at hand, there likely was no wider smile nor more furious heart than those belonging to Steve Wilson.

Don't know Steve Wilson? You're not alone.

He's here courtesy of his U.S. Mid-Am championship last September. If he wasn't, he'd likely be back home in Mississippi tending to his two gas stations, even "cleaning the bathrooms if necessary."

And somewhere along the route today, maybe as he's standing, waiting, taking in the beauty of this place, he might allow his mind to slide back four years to when Hurricane Katrina decimated his home, leaving it under four feet of water.

To think then that he would be standing alongside Tom Watson and Ian Poulter today under a crystal-blue Augusta sky, well, you understand the huge smile.

Changing Times: It seems like only yesterday that Hogan and Palmer, sometimes even a sneaky Nicklaus, calmed their nerves during a round at the Masters by lighting up.

Smoking inside the ropes has been history for a few years and now, at Augusta National at least, it is history outside the ropes, too. A new rule was put in place here this year that prohibits smoking in viewing stands and designated seating areas.

Going Green: Whether it was the continued threat of wind or the constant harangue of the malcontents who have criticized the lack of theatrics or heroics over the last few years here, Augusta National was set up Thursday in the most welcoming of ways.

"Green light" pins are pin positions where your approach can land and stay underneath the hole, setting up potential birdies. There were, at one modest count, 15 "green light" pin positions Thursday.

And the scoring -- and the subsequent roars, which have been so muted lately -- responded.

A Bunch of Jimmys: Chad Campbell on the verge of shooting 63 here in the first round brought back memories of the last 63 I witnessed here. Greg Norman cruised to the tournament record in 1996 (yes, that 1996) and was surrounded by three of us with cameras afterwards: Me, Jim Gray and Jimmy Roberts.

He talked of being in the zone all day and I asked him what that felt like. He smiled and looked at me and said, simply, "Jimmy, you will never, ever know."

That night, on three separate broadcasts, we each threw to that sound bite as if it was our own. Three Jimmys who certainly would never ever know.