For the past week, the Masters Golf Tournament has been faced with what I called Players vs. Mother Nature. On April 5th, 2017, for the first time in 56 years, the par 3 contest was canceled due to inclement weather. Of course, golf clubs and lightning aren't a good combination for safety. The play was suspended and eventually the grounds of the Augusta National Golf Club were evacuated. “The safety of everyone on our grounds was a determining factor in the decision to close the course and the par 3 contest,” said Chairman Billy Payne on the Masters website. “We share in the disappointment of our patrons, but the safety of everyone on our grounds is always our primary concern," said Payne. The key player I have watched during the Masters is Jordan Spieth from the United States. Jordan Spieth won the Masters back in 2015 for the first time and also his first major. I could see Spieth winning the another green jacket this year.
I have also been watching Rory McIlroy, who is from Northern Ireland. I could see Rory winning his first green jacket this year. Why is this his year, you ask? Rory will have his neigh running for the Masters, starting in 2009, who then lost to Bubba Watson in the 1st and 2nd round of the Masters. He has never won a major since then. This year, he has a shot to win his first major. Thursday was the first round of the Masters. According to the Masters website, it’s a go this time. Spieth teed off at 10:34 AM on Thursday and McIlroy teed off at 1:41 PM on Thursday.
The first round of the Masters started like no other golf tournament, but as one that the Honorees remember as they hit the first shot of the Masters Tournament. The honorees remember Arnold Palmer too, who passed away at 87 years old back in 2016. He cherished the 59th Masters at the Augusta National Golf Club dearly, which was where he won his first green jacket back when he was just 20 years old. “Arnold Palmer was more than 'The King',” said Billy Payne (chairman of the Augusta National and the Masters Tournament) to a large gathering of patrons at the first tee. “He was my friend. He was your friend. He always had time for all of us, which is why it still hurts and is so hard.”
Today, Dustin Johnson withdrew from the Masters tournament after stating that he fell down some stairs and injured his back and elbow, rendering him unable to play.
Another competitor, Adam Scott, said yesterday, “It’s an incredible feeling coming back as a Masters champion here anyway. The reception on the weekend gets better. Of course, the crowds have their favorites, like Freddie’s and Tom Watson and Mickelson’s, but it’s definitely a feeling out there today when I got it going that they like seeing us 'past champions' doing well. If I can get a couple birdies early tomorrow, feed off a bit of crowd momentum, it will be a fun day.” Adam Scott shot a 75 yesterday and Friday's score was 69. Another golfer, Zach Johnson, finished today with a 74, and yesterday with a 77. Fred Couples shot a 73 the first round and then shot a 70 the second round to make the cut. "I still feel nerves at Augusta, because I expect to play well here," said Couples. “I'm a competitor, so I like to believe in myself. I like to think that I've had a lot of good finishes here, and my goal is to keep fighting with these guys…I'm not thinking winning this tournament, but I'm thinking continuing to play well and see what happens.”
Jordan Spieth also made the cut, having shot a 69. If Jordan Spieth wins, he becomes the greatest player to ever take on Augusta this early in a golfer's career and gets to prove that he's the best of this generation. He says, “Tomorrow might free me up a bit, being behind. I plan to play aggressive because at this point, it’s win or go home. So you pull off the shots and you make the putts, then you know, I want to give myself a chance for that to be enough. And if I don’t, then so be it. Finishing 5th versus 10th doesn’t mean much to me, so that frees me up a bit tomorrow." After finishing, he tied for 4th place after dropping from 2nd place.
Justin Rose stated, “It was a beautiful day out there. We were kind of waiting – we saw the forecast and for the last couple of days, we were just waiting for that day. It was great to be out there. The course was in magnificent shape, and it was there for the taking in the sense that if you played great golf, you were rewarded, but still had enough teeth that if you weren't on your game it was going to get you." Rose shot a 71 the first round, a 72 the second round, and a 67 the third round, making him tied with Sergio Garcia.
Garcia said about the tie, “It was hard but it was fun. It was fun to play well again, to go through a Saturday at the Masters with a chance at winning and, you know, to be up there going into tomorrow. So I’m going to be playing with Justin, who is a good friend of mine. Should be a great match-up in that last group." After shooting a 71 the first round, a 69 the second round, and a 70 the third round, he tied with Justin Rose.
After shooting a 72 the first round, a 69 the second, and a 70 the third round, Rory McIlroy said, "“There’s times on this course where you take your medicine and try to just walk away with a par. And then there’s times to attack. I sort of got the balance right today, but I didn’t take my opportunities when I could have."
The fourth round started with a hole-in-one by Matt Kuchar, and then Garcia and Rose went head-to-head on the 18th hole. No one made it to win so they went at it again until sudden death. In the end, Sergio beat Rose for first place. What a fun week of golf, but a time of sadness for some. See you next year for the 69th Annual Masters Golf Tournament!
