New Zealand golfer Ryan Fox has had to endure a difficult finish to what again started as a promising round at the Masters in Augusta today.
Fox, like he has over the previous two rounds, began well, birdieing the first three holes before bogeying the seventh, eighth, ninth and 10th.
He parred the 11th and 12th and got a shot back on the 13th with a birdie but his momentum wouldn’t hold.
He bogeyed the 14th and much worse was to come when he hit a triple bogey on the par four 17th.
His triple did include a large element of misfortune, however. After an excellent drive, his approach shot hit the pin, sending the ball backwards into a bunker. After escaping the trap he four-putted.
On the 18th he never seemed comfortable on the tee box and he sent his drive right into the trees. After scuffing his second just on to the fairway, Fox failed to make the green with his third and had to hit a 10-foot putt to make bogey and sign for a five-over 77.
Fox began the day on one under and in a tie for eighth and finished the round on four over in a tie for 26th – equal with Australian Adam Scott and American Rickie Fowler.
“Yeah, it was a weird day,’’ Fox said afterwards. ”I had a couple of great shots early. Played some of the hard holes on the front nine, you know, three, four -- four, five, six pretty well.
“And then a bad three-putt on seven and a couple of bad drives on eight and nine. If the putter had worked a little better, I could have maybe got away with those.’
“I flagged one on 10 and it just went miles,’’ he said. ”Bad shot into 12, but got away with it. And then flagged one on 14.
“I think if I had not had that flag on 17 and probably not making worse than four, maybe had a good chance at three and I'm still in the golf tournament. That kind of screwed my head a little bit.
“Made a good bogey in the end up the last. I kind of don't know what to think. I felt like I played really good and shot 77.’
“Probably everyone saw what happened on 17. That's one of the more unlucky breaks I've had on a golf course. It rolled in a crap lie and had no way of getting near it. Had a bit of a brain explosion on that putt and kind of ruined what was a really good round."
World No.1 Scottie Scheffler leads the tournament on seven under. Fellow American Collin Morikawa, one of the big movers of the day, is second on six under.
Tiger Woods had a difficult day; he’s in a tie for 52nd after shooting 10 over today.
Fox has suffered with inconsistency over the past few months but showed promising signs over the first two days in windy conditions at Augusta. Today the conditions were more benign but some of the hole placements were extremely challenging.
Fox began with a three-under 69 in the first round - he fact he led the tournament for a short time after birdieing the first three holes - and hit a two-over 74 in the second round.
He is aiming to be the first Kiwi to finish in the top 10 at a men’s golf major since Michael Campbell in 2005, the year Campbell won the US Open.
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