With life limited to the next check for a return of his cancer, Thursday was a day worth savoring as David Smith of Dublin, Ireland, stepped through the gates of Augusta National Golf Club to fulfill a lifelong dream of seeing the Masters Tournament up close.
A day so good, in fact, it was worth getting married for, he joked.
``They might not have gotten married at all if they couldn't come to the Masters,'' teased Patience Humphrey, a family friend from Ireland who helped coordinate the visit that will be the highlight of the honeymoon.
``That was the big joke at home among my friends, `Are you sure you want to get married just to go to the Masters?''' Mr. Smith said, as he grinned at his wife, Jean. ``They said, `The Masters is for four days but Jean is for life.''' A life they are living day to day.
Chad Southward also measures his life by time not spent in the hospital, so for the 16-year-old Richmond, Va., boy to step into the world's greatest golf tournament was a thrill unimaginable.
``It's a lot better than on television,'' said a grinning Chad, standing near the main scoreboard.
The smile appeared between short, wet coughs, a symptom of cystic fibrosis, a genetic disorder that causes thick mucus to clog the lungs and can lead to infection and scarring. Although life expectancies have lengthened in recent years because of better care, most patients still die by their early 30s.
But on this day, Chad was only thinking about his golf fantasy trip, fulfilled through the Make-A-Wish Foundation, which grants wishes to children and young adults with terminal or life-threatening illnesses. The high school golfer plays every Sunday with his dad, Stuart, and he was sympathizing with Masters players about tournament nerves.
``These guys are probably a lot more experienced in playing in tournaments, but I bet everyone gets nervous in the tournament,'' Chad said.
For the Smiths of Dublin, the Masters also marks landmark events -- good and bad -- in their lives.
``We actually got engaged the week of the Masters two years ago,'' Mr. Smith said. ``And I was diagnosed the following Wednesday.''
What doctors had thought was bleeding ulcers in the then 28-year-old man turned out to be intestinal cancer.
The diagnosis merely delayed their lives as he first underwent surgery to remove four feet of intestine followed by daily radiation and monthly chemotherapy.
Cancer in patients that young was once thought to be more aggressive, and those patients faced worse outcomes but the evidence is now mixed; the outcome is less certain, said Rory Dalton, chief of surgical oncology at Medical College of Georgia.
The last round was in September, and when friends coordinated the visit six months ago, they decided their time had come. In fact, the timing had everything to do with the Masters, Mrs. Smith said.
``That's how we figured out what date we'd actually get married on,'' she said.
The future is now in those three-month checkups, and not much beyond, the Smiths said.
``When you've had so many relapses and slaps in the face, you tend to not look too far ahead, you just try to live your life,'' he said. The 30-year-old groom and his 27-year-old bride savor each day. .
``It's not every day your dream comes true,'' he said. ``And it's going to happen today.''
Tournament fills dreams of sick fans 