Surprise Reunion Makes National Finals Even More Memorable

“It’s been hectic, but we’re just having fun,” Rusty Crain said. “It won’t really hit us until we drive down Magnolia Lane.”

Crain, who tried to qualify for the National Finals six times before making it in her seventh attempt, fought back tears when she advanced through qualifying at Champions Golf Club in Houston.

“I was just really, really excited,” she said. “It’s such a big opportunity to get to do this. It was overwhelming.”

It wasn’t just overwhelming because she was finally going to Augusta National. It was the emotional phone call she made a few minutes after she qualified that had her fighting back tears.

Crain’s mother, Sherry, is a chief petty officer in the Navy. This past summer, Sherry Crain left for an 18-month deployment in Bahrain. She was not there when Dixie Mae earned her spot at Augusta National.

“There was a lot of emotion with that, too,” Dixie Mae said of the phone call to her mother. “It was a lot of emotions, with her not being there to see me make it or when I go. But she will get to watch me on TV.”

What Dixie Mae didn’t know during this conversation late Saturday afternoon was the surprise headed her way. Sherry Crain was able to make the journey to Augusta, and at a reception Saturday night for the finalists, she appeared to her unknowing daughter's delight. The reunited family joined in an emotional hug, now ready to experience all of Sunday's thrills fully together.

The amount of good players who compete in the Drive, Chip and Putt is impressive – especially in a state as big as Texas. And Rusty Crain, a retired Navy chief petty officer himself, wasn’t going to allow his daughter to take the easy road.

"Some people travel to other areas to make it easier," Rusty Crain said. “I told her, ‘That ain’t us. If you can’t beat the competition in Texas, you don’t deserve to go. We are going to go against the best.’ ”

And that is what they will do Sunday at Augusta National.