On a normal weekday morning, Steve Wilson would go to one of his two BP filling stations for a couple of hours on the Mississippi coast near Biloxi, account for all the money and take care of any maintenance duties, which include "maybe cleaning a bathroom."

Not today or Friday. Somebody else will have to take care of the latrine.

Wilson has earned a likely once-in-his-lifetime opportunity to pursue a green jacket, starting at 11:29 a.m. today when this 39-year-old amateur tees it up with Tom Watson and Ian Poulter.

"Tom Watson, wow! A hero of mine forever," Wilson said.

His Masters experience has been one "wow" moment after another. On Wednesday, while he was on the practice putting green before playing the Par-3 Contest, his 9-year-old son, Gavin, turned to his mother, Shelly, and said: "Let's leave Dad and go find Tiger (Woods)."

You couldn't wipe the smile off Wilson's face as Gavin toted his bag in the Par-3 and accommodated autograph seekers who wanted the boy's signature on their Masters flags.

"We thought we were going on just another golf trip, then we got here and it's been so surreal," Wilson's wife said.

That word would pretty much describe how Wilson, a part-time professional who played Hooters and Nike minitour events until the U.S. Golf Association reinstated his amateur status in 2005, finds himself living this improbable dream.

In recent years, he has considered giving up competitive golf "30-50 times" out of frustration. Wilson struggles with the putter because he has trouble reading greens.

When Hurricane Katrina hit nearly four years ago, flooding his home under four feet of water, the idea of teeing it up at the Masters wasn't high on the list of priorities.

That all changed in September when he entered the U.S. Mid-Amateur Championship in Milwaukee. With good friend and former tour player Gary Martin as his caddie, Wilson discovered a putting stroke he never thought possible. He conquered the 264-player field, punching his Masters ticket with 14 one-putt greens on his last 32 holes of match play.

"I didn't even look at the (putting) line," Wilson said. "(Martin) reads it, and then I just get over and hit it where he says."

For at least the next two days, Martin will serve as Wilson's caddie and trusted eyes on the treacherous Augusta greens. Father Tom and brothers David and Tom Jr. will be in his gallery for every shot. Tom Jr., who is 13 years older than Steve, taught him the game while serving as his "baby sitter." He would drag young Steve to the course, letting him play with sawed-off clubs.

"He was about Gavin's size when I first took him out," Tom Jr. said. "I had to pull him off a few times because he never wanted to leave."

When it's all over, Wilson will go back to his gas station and cherish every bit of the Masters experience.

Shelly Wilson jokingly said that her husband might not want to go back to their life on the Gulf Coast "after all this."

There's a couple other possible wow golf moments awaiting, however. Wilson could finish in the top 16 and earn a return trip to the Masters. Or he could take that free pass into U.S. Open sectional qualifying, either in Atlanta or Orlando, Fla., and shoot his way into this year's Open at Bethpage Black.

That could run into a rather expensive golf tab, but it sure beats the alternative of cleaning bathrooms.