“Just have fun with it and go out and play golf and see how far I can hit some of the irons off the tees into fairways,” Reed said. “And see if I can have fun and play creative golf because I think that’s what it’s going to take out here.”

Reed played his practice round Tuesday by himself, as he often does. Only a few fans bothered to watch, and he carried with him none of the trappings of a Masters champion.

The lack of attention is more because of Reed’s understated nature than anything else. But he got no boos, either, which might have been the case from fans remembering him shushing the crowd while trying to rally the U.S. team at the 2014 Ryder Cup in Scotland.

“You would have thought I would have come over here and have a lot of mixed reviews from people,” Reed said. “But they seemed to really get behind me because they saw the passion I have not only for the game but for my country and golf.”

It’s a passion born of a life playing golf, and a long time chasing his dream of playing on the PGA Tour. Now that Reed is secure in his status as a major champion, there’s a promise of even better things to come.

Who knows, a win here might even make fans forget what side he plays on in the Ryder Cup.