Graeme McDowell laments soft playing conditions rendering them the cause of his loss in Masters
Northern Irishman Graeme McDowell, who posted a humble joint 12th in the event last week, is eager to start off his next Masters bid from the very next day, citing phenomenal gains at the Augusta National.
The Ulsterman, who started off with a disappointing three-over, 75 amid the strongmen of the sport, fell for late bogeys in the second round to close for even-par, 72.
He gathered his composure to continue improving his score card over the weekend to post a one-under, 71 and a four-under, 68 on the third and the final round of the event respectively.
He finished for a joint 12th, his highest Masters finish so far in his career.
He said, “I'd love this tournament to be starting tomorrow because I fancy my chances”.
McDowell lamented the playing conditions on the starting days of the event and said that the softer playing conditions caused him to slide down the leaderboard.
He added, “The golf course as wet as it was on Thursday and Friday was not the golf course for me. I am just not driving it long enough, not shaping it from right to left well enough, and I was able to handle a little bit more these firmer fairways”.
The 2010 US Open winner hasn’t won a title for a considerable period of time and has been lurking shadows for almost two years.
The Ryder Cup hero, who guided the European Team to a glorious victory, has been trailing the leaders since then and has fallen from once high of number five on the Official World Golf Rankings (OWGR) to a low of 15.
Barely taken aback by the loss, the Northern Irishman intends to carry on with his battle to clinch the first green jacket of his career here at Augusta National.
He added, “I'm looking forward to many more Augustas, many more Masters championships, and like I said, I'd love to put that Green Jacket on my back”.
This was McDowell’s fifth appearance at Augusta National since he first set foot on the historic course in 2005.
He missed the halfway cut the debut event and made his second appearance in the year 2009, posting a joint 17th. He has been missing the cut consecutively after that.
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