It will be a long flight back to London from Indonesia for Colin Montgomerie. Chances are the answering machine light in his rental apartment in Chelsea won't be blinking tonight.
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Pity.
Monty's caller ID should display a number from American area code 706. The voice he hears on tape should have a pleasantly dignified Southern lilt.
"Mr. Montgomerie, this is Hootie Johnson. Sorry to bother you so late, but we'd be honored if you would join us at our tournament next week. I look forward to your visit."
Monty deserves a special international exemption into this year's Masters Tournament. After qualifying for 13 consecutive tournaments, he deserves at least one free pass while he's still competitive.
He deserves it more than Japan's Shingo Katayama does for the second time in four years. He deserves it way more than Aaron Baddeley did back-to-back in 2000-01. He deserves it so much more than China's then 181st-ranked Lian-Wei Zhang did last year, it's not worth getting started on that debate.
Montgomerie deserves it because he's one of the greatest players of the past 15 years and, as he proved in last fall's Ryder Cup, he still can
play a little. The seven-time Order of Merit winner and the most accomplished active golfer in the world without a major victory shouldn't be excluded because of fractions in a computer program.
"If they consider other players, they should probably consider him, too," said two-time Masters champion Bernhard Langer. "He's still playing good golf and he's very close. The top 50 in the world ranking get in and you're 52nd or 54th, you're that close to getting in anyway."
"He's a guy who has proven it for a long time and been a great player in the Ryder Cup, great player over in Europe, done well over here and has a great streak playing at the Masters," said 2003 Masters champion Mike Weir of Canada. "I think he's a guy that they should look at."
"The guy is just on the edge," Englishman Paul Casey said. "You could justify it because he's still playing great golf. It would be nice to have him there."
It certainly would. The highest-ranked Scotsman in the world would add a lot more to the Masters than the Japan Tour money leader famous for his cowboy hat, 9-wood and one decent performance in the 2001 PGA Championship.
At last check, that Scotland place has a little bit more history in this game than the Far East. It just doesn't have the same TV ratings or rights fees.
It would be nice to consider a guy who has made nine cuts in 13 Masters, finished five times in the top 25 and tied for eighth in 1998.
It also would be nice to consider a 41-year-old man who has come a long way under trying circumstances to put himself on the brink of an automatic invitation.
Monty struggled through this stretch a year ago, embarking on divorce proceedings that left him in tears after one European Tour round in May. After a few difficult months dropped him out of the top 50 for the first time in years, he patched his game back together for a run at the Ryder Cup.
"Personally he's had a lot of issues to deal with," said Langer, who invited Monty as a captain's pick. (Incidentally, Ryder Cup participants used to be automatically invited.)
In the matches at Oakland Hills, Monty was the catalyst in Europe's romp over the United States - even sinking the deciding putt himself.
Montgomerie continues to play quality golf around the world this year. Before this week, his finishes on the European Tour ranged from second to 11th. He was in fifth place in his only PGA Tour start, the rain-shortened Nissan Open.
Monty, currently 54th in the world ranking, needed to win this week in Indonesia to have a chance to break the top 50 before Monday's Masters deadline. He won't do that.
But if the rankings really mean anything, consider that Montgomerie is ranked higher than Greg Norman was when he got a second Masters exemption in 2002 (125th), higher than Katayama is currently (68th) and higher than Baddeley has ever been in his life.
If a Masters special invitation is really about merit and not about marketing, then Monty fits the spirit of the rule that allows the Masters Committee, at its discretion, to also invite international players not otherwise qualified.
This is precisely the kind of situation in which that discretion should be applied.
Reach Scott Michaux at (706) 823-3219 or scott.michaux@augustachronicle.com.
