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By PGATOUR.com staff

Every golfer -- from the pros to the never-broke-100s -- dreams of one day winning the Masters.

When Zach Johnson earned his Green Jacket on Sunday and fulfilled that dream, his former Nationwide Tour colleagues and friends weren't green with envy.

In fact, they're downright happy for their fellow golfer.

Many of his fellow former competitors on the Nationwide Tour were thrilled to see Zach Johnson win the Masters. (Ehrmann/WireImage)

"Zach hits it straight and is a very good putter. That is pretty much his M.O.," said Josh Broadaway. "Plus, he is a great guy. Put it this way, nobody was disappointed when he won. Everyone likes Zach."

Broadaway was a member of the Nationwide Tour in 2003 when Johnson earned Player of the Year honors. During that stellar season, Johnson had two wins at the Rheem Classic and the Envirocare Utah Classic, nine top-three finishes and placed first on the money list.

With his talent and past successes, which include a PGA TOUR win at the 2004 BellSouth Classic, it didn't shock his fellow pros when Johnson, a self-proclaimed "normal guy," won.

"Zach has two main ingredients to his game -- he drives it dead straight and he putts it really well. That is usually a pretty good combination," said Tom Carter, a member of the Nationwide Tour from 2001-03 and 2005-06. "He is also a very nice guy. But don't let that fool you, because he is a fierce competitor on the course. We saw that week in and week out on the Nationwide Tour, and the whole world saw it this past week at the Masters."

Johnson worked his way up from the Prairie Golf Tour to the Nationwide Tour in 2000, where he missed the first six cuts in his rookie campaign but eventually had one top-25 finish. On the Hooters Tour in 2001, he was given the nickname "Back-to-back-to-back Zach" after winning the last three events of the season. He eventually returned to the Nationwide Tour in 2003, where he had that career year and became the first player in Tour history to top $400,000 in earnings.

As Johnson shared with "Inside the PGA TOUR," he has fond memories of his Nationwide Tour days and is appreciative of the doors that it opened for him.

"The Tour is amazing," he said. "It's one of the best tours in the world. It's purpose is to develop players and it does a very good job of that. It's set up the same way as the PGA TOUR. A little less profile, which is fine.

"Great golf, great players, great competition. I'm truly grateful for it. It's got a lot of opportunities on the Nationwide Tour and I think that will only get better in the years to come."

In his first season on the PGA TOUR, Johnson became just the second player in history to top $2 million in earnings during his rookie year. Fast forward to 2007, when he became the first Nationwide Tour alum to win the Masters.

So what is it about Johnson's game that makes him a player to watch out for on any tour?

"One thing that stands out about Zach is his putter," said Pat Sheehan. "He keeps the ball in front of him and man, he can putt with the best of them. That was evident this past week in Augusta."