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McIlroy leaves Masters with latest lesson learned
Rory McIlroy left another Masters Tournament with another lesson learned. The 26-year-old has been through the grind of contending at Augusta National Golf Club on several occasions, and once again he has come away thinking of what could have been. After a disappointing third-round 77 in the final pairing Saturday, McIlroy carded 1-under-par 71 in the final round Sunday to finish 1-over in a tie for 10th.
Danny Willett wins the 2016 Masters
Danny Willett has won the 2016 Masters Tournament at Augusta National Golf Club. Jordan Spieth led for much of the tournament, until a bogey, bogey, quadruple-bogey stretch on 10, 11 and 12 took him from seven under and a five-shot lead to one under and a tie for fourth. Willett took advantage of Spieth's missteps to take the lead at five under par with Dustin Johnson and Lee Westwood on his heels. He finished at five-under 67 for the day to move to five under for the tournament.
Patrick Reed focused on putting
Patrick Reed needed one letter to describe his goal for this week. “W,” he said after Tuesday’s practice round. This week marks Reed’s third appearance at Augusta National Golf Club. Last year, the Augusta State University product finished tied for 22nd at 2-under-par 286. He missed the cut in his first Masters Tournament in 2014. “I’m playing well right now – it’s only Tuesday, though,” Reed said.
Wife's health scare gives Leishman new outlook on golf
There’s a universal refrain shared at Augusta National Golf Club this week, from players and patrons to media and members: We’re lucky to be here. Few, however, understand that more palpably than Australian golfer Marc Leishman. “This time last year, everything was normal,” Leishman said before Masters Week. “My wife got sick the week before the Masters.
Masters invitees not exempt from injury, illness, family, duty
The Masters has had its share of excused absences through the years, but rarely has the potential no-show list been so long and for such varied reasons. Injuries, babies and military conscription could claim as many as five starters from the 93 players qualified to compete in the 2016 Masters. Four-time champion Tiger Woods (back) and former U.S. Open champ Jim Furyk (wrist) are both casualties of surgical recoveries.
Tom Watson's first win at Augusta sparked his tour dominance
Tom Watson will be the last of the stars from his era to say farewell to the Masters Tournament as a player this week. Just don’t remind him of that. “You’re making me feel old,” said the 66-year-old two-time champion, who will be playing in his 43rd Masters, ninth on the all-time career list of starts. Despite his protest about age, Watson will be the only player in the 80th Masters born in the 1940s, the only one in his 60s and the oldest player by eight years.
Day gets the No. 1 ranking and the Match Play title
AUSTIN, Texas - Jason Day made his return to No. 1 in the world feel even sweeter Sunday by winning the Dell Match Play. Day outlasted Rory McIlroy in an epic battle in the morning semifinals by making a 12-foot par putt on the 18th hole. The championship match against Louis Oosthuizen turned into a victory lap at Austin Country Club. And to think Day thought about pulling out Thursday morning when his back seized up on him. Three dayslater, he looked better than ever.
21st career win puts Love where he's wanted to be
Davis Love III had not returned to Augusta National since missing the cut in the 2011 Masters Tournament. He hadn’t been back to watch or participate in the Par-3 Contest as a past PGA champion, not because he was getting too old and felt he no longer could compete on the big course, but because he absolutely believed he could still compete at the highest level. “It’s disappointing not to get in; to go there might make it worse,” Love said. “I’m walking 18 holes going, ‘I can hit it like that.
Spieth's 2015 is comparable to best years in golf history
It’s easy to see Jordan Spieth cruising halfway toward a Grand Slam at age 21 and conclude he must have skipped a step. Everybody could certainly see that the young Texan had the ingredients to be a transcendent golfer. “He can be great,” said Tiger Woods. “A rare talent,” offered Phil Mickelson. “A superstar,” said Paul Azinger. “A special young kid,” said Jack Nicklaus.
Honesty about inner demons makes Na, other players more real
Kevin Na missed the cut in his first Masters start in 2010, but that’s not what stands out about it. “I remember my first Masters and walking off the 13th tee I told my caddie, ‘If you told me as a kid that you’re playing in the Masters someday I would have been the happiest kid alive,’” Na said. “I wanted to play the PGA Tour one day but the Masters was something beyond that.” Na will make his sixth appearance at Augusta National this year, coming off a tie for 12th in 2015.
Patrick Reed ready after final round surprise in 2015
Patrick Reed has a contingency plan this year in case something again happens to one of his clubs during the Masters Tournament. The former Augusta State star was caught unprepared in the final round last year when the face on his 3-wood caved in on his tee shot on the second hole. Under the Rules of Golf, he could replace the club with another 3-wood because he damaged it in the course of play, not in anger. There was only one problem.
Masters rookie Justin Thomas feeling good about bentgrass greens
Most Masters Tournament rookies are worried about how they will fare on the slick bentgrass greens at Augusta National Golf Club. Justin Thomas is not one of them. First, Thomas likes putting on fast greens, according to his caddie Jimmy Johnson. And second, he’s received a tutorial on the greens from a player who is considered one of the best on them – Augusta National member Jeff Knox.
Phil Mickelson still has a shot at Augusta after strong 2015 showing
Once he hit his 40s, it looked like Phil Mickelson’s chances of winning the Masters Tournament for a fourth time were over. Then came last year at Augusta National and the start of this season, which has been shaping up as a renaissance of sorts for the 45-year-old. Mickelson tied for second place in the Masters last year at 14-under par, thanks to rounds of 70-68-67-69. He lost by four to Jordan Spieth, who tied the tournament scoring record, but it was still Mickelson’s best showing since 2012.
Bubba Watson riding high into Augusta
The stars could be aligning for Bubba Watson to win another Masters Tournament. He won in 2012 and 2014 and so far his season is eerily similar to those two years. • He won at Riviera in mid-February, just as he did in 2014. • He also was a runner-up in early March in the World Golf Championship-Cadillac Championship both those years.
Rickie Fowler finding winning touch
Rickie Fowler is looking good these days not only on the golf course, but in the win column. The 27-year-old Fowler, a darling with the younger set because of his fashion style and action sports background, has broken through on the golf course since last year’s Masters Tournament.
Jordan Spieth joins long line of Texas champions
Perhaps we should have seen the baton pass coming. Few golfers have ever been imbued with a mystical quality for the moment like Ben Crenshaw.
Hideki Matsuyama's recent win fuels confidence
It would be unfair to characterize Hideki Matsuyama’s 2015 campaign as a step backward simply because he failed to win a tournament for the first time as a professional. But it wasn’t much of a step forward either for the 24-year-old from Japan. Matsuyama started 2015 ranked No. 16 in the world and finished it ranked No. 15. Through the course of 27 worldwide events that included a career-high 10 top-10 finishes, his ranking never fluctuated higher than 18th or lower than 14th.
Zach Johnson heads to Augusta after joining elite company with British Open win
It’s a pretty exclusive fraternity of players who have won major championships on the two most iconic golf courses in the world – the Old Course at St. Andrews and Augusta National. Eight years after his surprise victory at the 2007 Masters, Johnson became Champion Golfer of the Year with a playoff victory at the home of golf. “That’s a good list,” Johnson said of the Hall of Famers and soon-to-be-one who accomplished the feat before him.
Masters field at 89 going into next year
See a list of all current 2016 Masters invitees Westwood, who tied for second two weeks ago in the Thailand Golf Championship, will move up one spot to No. 50 next week in the final world ranking of the year, assuring him a place in the field at Augusta National in April. Westwood is No. 51 this week, but with gradual reductions in points, he will go back to no. 50 in the last ranking of 2015. Chris Kirk, who will fall to No. 51, already is in the Masters from winning Colonial.
Canadian Corey Conners leads amateur field in Masters
The Crow’s Nest in the clubhouse could have seven residents this Masters Week, and the highest-rated amateur among them is the only guy who didn’t win a tournament to qualify. Corey Conners of Canada is the 21st-ranked amateur in the world, but he lost the U.S. Amateur championship to then-No. 776 Gunn Yang at Atlanta Athletic Club.
Throwback Thursday: Caddie-inspired changes help Crenshaw win 1995 Masters
Ben Crenshaw might not have won the 1995 Masters Tournament had Carl Jackson not taken the “caddie shortcut” to the edge of the ninth fairway at Augusta National Golf Club to save some time. The move put Jackson about 150 yards away from Crenshaw, who was teeing off on No. 9. It allowed Jackson to see two flaws in Crenshaw’s swing during a pivotal practice round, and helped set in motion Crenshaw’s unlikely victory. Crenshaw was struggling with his game – and his emotions.
UGA Week: Teachings of golf coach Chris Haack spell success
The architect of the reigning collegiate golf factory got off to a perfect start – if by perfect you mean like the dubious performance by the Brooklyn Dodgers’ batting lineup against Don Larsen in the 1956 World Series. “We were 0-7 out of the gate,” Chris Haack said of blue-chip recruiting targets he went after upon his arrival as the University of Georgia’s golf coach in 1996. Haack had accepted his first and only coaching job in July, but naively waited until Sept.
A look back at Masters disasters
Today is Friday the 13th, and it seems like an appropriate day to revisit some of the worst disasters in Masters Tournament history. LET’S START WITH THE MOST PAINFUL – Roberto de Vicenzo’s scorecard gaffe in 1968. The Argentinian would have been in an 18-hole playoff with Bob Goalby had he not signed for a higher score than he shot. The error occurred when playing partner Tommy Aaron marked him down for a ‘4’ instead of a birdie ‘3’ at the 17th.
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