By David Westin
The Augusta Chronicle

MARIETTA, Ga. -- John Wilson plans to make a rare appearance at his home in Palm Desert, Calif., next week after four straight weeks of grinding away on the PGA Tour.

Those arrangements are subject change if Wilson keeps up the pace he started Thursday in the $1.3 million BellSouth Classic at the Atlanta Country Club. Next week, Wilson may be playing in his first Masters Tournament.

Wilson, a 37-year-old whose best finish in four years on the PGA Tour is a tie for fourth earlier this year in the Phoenix Open, put together a bogey-free, 6-under-par 66 Thursday and shares the first-round lead with Corey Pavin and Jim Gallagher.

There is one spot open in the field for next week's Masters and it goes to the winner of this tournament if he hasn't already qualified.

``My family is pretty happy with me and I've got to get home,'' said Wilson, who has won $107,469 this season in nine events compared with $149,280 in 30 events of last season.

``Hopefully or unhopefully or whatever, I'll be getting home soon,'' Wilson said. ``I'm ready to see home. One of the next two weeks I will be home.''

With 54 holes left here, Wilson can't be thinking about the drive down The Augusta National's Magnolia Lane and he knows it.

``That's the farthest thing from my mind,'' Wilson said of the Masters. ``We've still got three more days to play.''

If Wilson were to win, he'd be the fourth first-time winner on the tour in the last five weeks.

``I get a little jazzed when we see a new winner out there,'' Wilson said. ``There's an electricity out there.''

Wilson was better known for his caddy last year on the PGA Tour than his golf game. The man on the bag was former Augusta National caddy Carl Jackson, who has caddied for both of Ben Crenshaw's Masters victories.

At last year's MCI Classic in mid-April, Wilson said Jackson told him he didn't like Wilson's nickname for him - Chief.

``So in a practice round I said, `Chief, well, what do you want me to call you?'°'' Wilson said. ``And he says, `You know, I won twice at Augusta, why don't you call me Master. I said I won't call you Master but I will call you Major, and he didn't care for that. We had words.''

``It's not the way it sounds - it was all in fun,'' Jackson said after his new player, Sean Murphy, shot 72 Thursday. ``That's the way I took it and that's the way John took it. Being called Chief didn't bother me one way or another. I was joking when I told him to call me Master. We laughed about it. He told three dozen pros that story. They were all laughing.''

Wilson and Jackson stayed together for 10 weeks after the MCI Classic before ``breaking up the team,'' Jackson said.

``We're still good friends and I've got a world of respect for Carl,'' Wilson said. ``He's a terrific caddy.''

NOTES: Two-time Masters champion Seve Ballesteros' travails continued Thursday. The Spaniard shot a 78, which included a two-shot penalty for hitting the wrong ball on No. 9.

His game in disarry, Ballesteros took five months off after the Ryder Cup in September and things haven't improved. In his first Master tune-up in this country, Ballesteros withdrew on the 11th hole of the first round of last week's Players Championship, complaining of back problems. He'd shot 41 on the first nine and been wild off the tee.

On Thursday, his wayward driving continued. Ballesteros hit just four fairways.

``I haven't been playing very much this year and I don't have much confidence,'' Ballesteros said. ``It's time to pick up the confidence.''

Lanny Wadkins, who needs a victory this week to extend his string of consecutive appearances in the Masters Tournament to 19, opened with a 73.

Thursday was not a good day for Augusta-area players. Ex-Augusta College golfer Taylor Smith was the low man with 74. Other scores included Thomson's Franklin Langham with 75, Aiken's Hugh Royer III with 76, Augusta's Larry Mize with 79 and ex-Augusta resident Allen Doyle with 80.