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Adam Scott united a nation in 2013 when he became the first Australian to win the Masters and make a big name in the world of sports. Six years on, and with a game close to returning to its very best, he can be among the green jacket contenders again. Here’s how.
Good form is a bonus heading into any major golf championship. But there are certain elements of a player’s game that need to be firing on all cylinders as they drive down Augusta’s Magnolia Lane for the first time in Mastersweek.
The Queenslander has started a Masters round with a bogey on 18 occasions, while a double bogey has set him back four times and he averages 4.33 on the 445-yard par-4. Perhaps the most interesting aspect of his play on the hole called ‘Tea Olive’ is he has only birdied it five times in 16 years of playing the Masters. One of those birdies came in the opening round of the 2013 Masters, which he, of course, went on to win ... even after throwing a bogey onto the scorecard at the 1st hole in the fi nal round.
Examining his play on the opening hole in recent years, Scott appears to struggle to find the fairway. Out of the four rounds he played in 2018, he missed the short grass three times finding the fairway bunker (1st round), the right trees (2nd round) and trees to the left forcing a chip out (3rd round) and ultimately led to a bogey. In the final round, he skirted the fairway trap with his drive, hit his second shot to 40 feet and two-putted for a solid par.
Scott confessed in a Masters media conference in 2016 that he always gets 1st tee jitters at Augusta. “Going to the first tee Thursday is the most nervous I get all year of any event anywhere at any time,” Scott said. “Even more nervous than coming to a playoff or coming off the last hole with a chance to win, is the 1st tee. It’s something that I found it the hardest to calm down on this golf course in the first round over the first few holes than anywhere else.
“It obviously has a real significance to me. But that’s something I’ve had to learn to do here.” Scott adds: “The first tee shot in the Masters is one of the most intimidating tee shots you will ever hit. The build-up to the tournament has been so long, and you’re excited it has finally arrived. It’s not overly difficult, but under the circumstances it can be tough, and at times during my career, I have struggled on it.”
When Scott won in 2013 he was just five under on the par-5s for four rounds in a winning total of nine under. In comparison, fellow Queenslander Jason Day, who finished two shots out of the play-off,was nine under for the par-5s that week. Further,Watson’s eight under winning score in 2014 was achieved by reaching that mark under par on the par-5s alone. In Scott’s case there would appear to be two parts of the game affecting his par-5 performances at Augusta.
When he finds the fairway he doesn’t have trouble reaching the putting surface in two blows on all four holes. But putting from long range, especially when he was using the long putter,was problematic. Even in the final round of his 2013 win he threw a three-putt par into the mix. Scott found the long 8th green in two shots, having flushed a 2-iron from an uphill lie and proceeded to three-jab for a five.
Since winning in 2013, some might argue his wedge play hasn’t been as sharp, especially on the really difficult pitch shots Augusta presents, like the downhill pitch from a tight lie over water to the shallow 15th green. Scott knows he will have to be sharper with his wedges if he wants a second green jacket.
“At the Masters, you just have to be disciplined in executing your game plan. And you really have to practice your wedge game,” he said on the eve of the 2018 Masters. “You’re not going to win at Augusta National hitting poor wedge shots.” At this point it must be remembered, Zach Johnson won the 2007 Masters by laying up on every par-5 in each round and finished 11-under-par on those holes for the tournament (one over par was the winning score).
Of course, he did make history that week by winning. Scotty has since ditched the long putter and Steve Williams is no longer the trusted man on the bag, But a common thread he has with that week’s preparation, as he heads into another Masters campaign, is his reunion with coach and brother-in-law Brad Malone. It was Malone, who helped guide Scott out of his 2009 slump and up the world rankings to No.1 a year after donning the green jacket. The pair split for more than 12 months before getting back together on the eve of last year’s US Open.
Scott’s results since then have been better and he feels like his game is getting closer to the golden period that followed his Masters victory. “I have made lots of changes over the last few years and think my game is close,” Scott said recently. “If you ask Brad, I’m swinging the club really well and that confidence compounding over the next month could be really positive before the majors and big events this year.
“Now, I feel like I’m going to have a good score every time I tee it up and I haven’t had that consistency for a while. I’m on my way to getting it again.” While much is made of the clutch putts he holed at the death to defeat Angel Cabrera, it was his pure ball-striking that put him in contention as he hit 76.39 percent of greens (55 from 72) in regulation to lead the fi eld in that stat category. With his game from tee-to-green nearing those exceptional standards again, he can aff ord to adopt the same strategies playing cautiously where needed and attacking the course at the right times that worked so well in 2013. Put it this way, if he hits 55 greens in regulation at this Masters he will be deep in contention on Sunday afternoon.
Scott’s putting stroke has been much maligned over the years, but he went a long way to silencing the critics when he holed those putts to win at Augusta six years ago. That said, it remains the part of his game that has undoubtedly been the source of more frustration than any other for Scott. But it would seem recent putting changes are working for the now 38-year-old, who has adopted an arm-lock putting grip with a longer putter. He put the grip and putter in play at the Farmers Insurance Open in February and finished in the top-15 players on the greens that week. How the new putting stroke works at Augusta remains to be seen. But, according to Rory McIlroy, it won’t matter. He says, Augusta might be the one major tournament venue where you don’t have to be a brilliant putter to win, which would suit Scott just fine.
“At Augusta, you don’t need to putt great, you need to not waste any shots, no three-putts, hole everything inside five feet,” McIlroy said at the 2018 Masters. “You don’t need to hole every 15-footer that you look at, you need to be efficient, just not to be wasteful.”
Here’s the proof. Bubba Watson is generally regarded as one of the Tour’s weakest putters and he has two green jackets. Dig a little deeper and you’ll find that only one player in the past decade, Jordan Spieth, has won the Masters and finished that same year with a ranking inside the Top-10 on the PGA Tour for strokes gained putting. In fact, only four Masters Champions Danny Willett, Spieth, Charl Schwartzel and Angel Cabrera have managed to crack a spot in the Top-100 putters on Tour in the same year they claimed the green jacket.
To achieve the “efficient” putting McIlroy speaks of, Scott will have to improve his feel for the speed difference between uphill and downhill putts, which he admitted at last year’s Masters “is something I always struggle with at Augusta.”
His 2019 form with the flatstick shows plenty of promise though, with a strokes gained putting ranking of No.18 (through the end of February) and a No.1 ranking for putts made between 15 and 20 feet.
“So it just happens. I don’t know, that stuff, you can’t control, but I think the golfing Gods sort all that kind of stuff out.” The golfing Gods were there when Fred Couples’ ball stayed above the water line next to the 12th green in 1992. Likewise, Scotty had similar good fortune in 2013 when his approach into the par-5 13th green spun back towards the water hazard and stopped on a blade of grass. “I caught a good break in the final round in 2013,” he said. “I hit a 7-iron well and thought it was fine, but I pushed it a few yards. The ball hit and spun back toward the creek. Luckily, it somehow held up on the bank, and I made birdie. “When you win tournaments, you often get a bit of luck. That was mine right there.” The legendary NFL coach Vince Lombardi once said, “Champions make their own luck,” which might ring true again for Scott on the hallowed grounds of Augusta National Night Golf Club.
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| Adam Scott Golfer |
Good form is a bonus heading into any major golf championship. But there are certain elements of a player’s game that need to be firing on all cylinders as they drive down Augusta’s Magnolia Lane for the first time in Mastersweek.
Adam Scott Golfer
Adam Scott will be making his 18th Masters appearance and will be keen to add to his already impressive record of one win, two top-three finishes and five top-10s. He’s only missed the cut twice since 2002. In 64 rounds played he has been under par 24 times. These impressive statistics are hardly surprising when you consider the hallmarks of his game superior driving skills and high-trajectory iron shots that can be stopped close to a tightly cut pin position.Adam Scott Swing
Having set the victory blue print back in 2013, here are five key things Scott needs to get right at this year’s Masters if the green jacket is to be slipped over his shoulders for a second time.1. CONTROL THE 1ST TEE NERVES
Scott’s record on Augusta’s opening hole is nothing to write home about. In 64 Masters rounds played, the 2013 Masters Champion is a cumulative 21-over-par on what ranks among the top-five hardest holes on the course year-in, year-out.The Queenslander has started a Masters round with a bogey on 18 occasions, while a double bogey has set him back four times and he averages 4.33 on the 445-yard par-4. Perhaps the most interesting aspect of his play on the hole called ‘Tea Olive’ is he has only birdied it five times in 16 years of playing the Masters. One of those birdies came in the opening round of the 2013 Masters, which he, of course, went on to win ... even after throwing a bogey onto the scorecard at the 1st hole in the fi nal round.
Examining his play on the opening hole in recent years, Scott appears to struggle to find the fairway. Out of the four rounds he played in 2018, he missed the short grass three times finding the fairway bunker (1st round), the right trees (2nd round) and trees to the left forcing a chip out (3rd round) and ultimately led to a bogey. In the final round, he skirted the fairway trap with his drive, hit his second shot to 40 feet and two-putted for a solid par.
Scott confessed in a Masters media conference in 2016 that he always gets 1st tee jitters at Augusta. “Going to the first tee Thursday is the most nervous I get all year of any event anywhere at any time,” Scott said. “Even more nervous than coming to a playoff or coming off the last hole with a chance to win, is the 1st tee. It’s something that I found it the hardest to calm down on this golf course in the first round over the first few holes than anywhere else.
“It obviously has a real significance to me. But that’s something I’ve had to learn to do here.” Scott adds: “The first tee shot in the Masters is one of the most intimidating tee shots you will ever hit. The build-up to the tournament has been so long, and you’re excited it has finally arrived. It’s not overly difficult, but under the circumstances it can be tough, and at times during my career, I have struggled on it.”
2. DOMINATE THE PAR-5s
Much has been made in recent years about the role Augusta National’s par-5s play in determining who takes home the green jacket. It is not an observation without substance. The list of the best players on the four par-5s at Augusta National the 2nd, 8th, 13th and 15th holes is dominated by modern Masters Champions. Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson, BubbaWatson and Jordan Spieth all figure in the top-10 scorers on at least three of the quartet of par-5s. Scott does not, which is surprising given his length and ability to hit high, soft-sitting iron approach shots. While he performs quite well on the two back nine three-shotters, he would probably like to make more of an impression on the front side, especially at the 575-yard downhill 2nd hole. The fact he has only registered 18 birdies here in 64 rounds, suggests his nervous starts at the opening hole might be playing on his mind as he walks the 2nd fairway.When Scott won in 2013 he was just five under on the par-5s for four rounds in a winning total of nine under. In comparison, fellow Queenslander Jason Day, who finished two shots out of the play-off,was nine under for the par-5s that week. Further,Watson’s eight under winning score in 2014 was achieved by reaching that mark under par on the par-5s alone. In Scott’s case there would appear to be two parts of the game affecting his par-5 performances at Augusta.
When he finds the fairway he doesn’t have trouble reaching the putting surface in two blows on all four holes. But putting from long range, especially when he was using the long putter,was problematic. Even in the final round of his 2013 win he threw a three-putt par into the mix. Scott found the long 8th green in two shots, having flushed a 2-iron from an uphill lie and proceeded to three-jab for a five.
Since winning in 2013, some might argue his wedge play hasn’t been as sharp, especially on the really difficult pitch shots Augusta presents, like the downhill pitch from a tight lie over water to the shallow 15th green. Scott knows he will have to be sharper with his wedges if he wants a second green jacket.
“At the Masters, you just have to be disciplined in executing your game plan. And you really have to practice your wedge game,” he said on the eve of the 2018 Masters. “You’re not going to win at Augusta National hitting poor wedge shots.” At this point it must be remembered, Zach Johnson won the 2007 Masters by laying up on every par-5 in each round and finished 11-under-par on those holes for the tournament (one over par was the winning score).
3. STICK TO WHAT WORKS
On the eve of the 2013 Masters, Adam Scott was quietly confident of his chances to win later in the week. He emphasised the importance of “process” and sticking to what works. “I think the most important part is finding the things that you need to do in that the process, finding what works, and I think that was what I was searching for such a long time in my career, why I couldn’t produce good results in bigger events when I played well in regular Tour events or anywhere else around the world.”Of course, he did make history that week by winning. Scotty has since ditched the long putter and Steve Williams is no longer the trusted man on the bag, But a common thread he has with that week’s preparation, as he heads into another Masters campaign, is his reunion with coach and brother-in-law Brad Malone. It was Malone, who helped guide Scott out of his 2009 slump and up the world rankings to No.1 a year after donning the green jacket. The pair split for more than 12 months before getting back together on the eve of last year’s US Open.
Scott’s results since then have been better and he feels like his game is getting closer to the golden period that followed his Masters victory. “I have made lots of changes over the last few years and think my game is close,” Scott said recently. “If you ask Brad, I’m swinging the club really well and that confidence compounding over the next month could be really positive before the majors and big events this year.
“Now, I feel like I’m going to have a good score every time I tee it up and I haven’t had that consistency for a while. I’m on my way to getting it again.” While much is made of the clutch putts he holed at the death to defeat Angel Cabrera, it was his pure ball-striking that put him in contention as he hit 76.39 percent of greens (55 from 72) in regulation to lead the fi eld in that stat category. With his game from tee-to-green nearing those exceptional standards again, he can aff ord to adopt the same strategies playing cautiously where needed and attacking the course at the right times that worked so well in 2013. Put it this way, if he hits 55 greens in regulation at this Masters he will be deep in contention on Sunday afternoon.
4. GET THE SPEED RIGHT
Only the most cynical golf fan might believe that only the best putter over four days of the Masters wins the green jacket. In fact, most years only a handful goes through 72 holes without a three-putt on the fast-running and quick breaking Augusta putting surfaces.Scott’s putting stroke has been much maligned over the years, but he went a long way to silencing the critics when he holed those putts to win at Augusta six years ago. That said, it remains the part of his game that has undoubtedly been the source of more frustration than any other for Scott. But it would seem recent putting changes are working for the now 38-year-old, who has adopted an arm-lock putting grip with a longer putter. He put the grip and putter in play at the Farmers Insurance Open in February and finished in the top-15 players on the greens that week. How the new putting stroke works at Augusta remains to be seen. But, according to Rory McIlroy, it won’t matter. He says, Augusta might be the one major tournament venue where you don’t have to be a brilliant putter to win, which would suit Scott just fine.
“At Augusta, you don’t need to putt great, you need to not waste any shots, no three-putts, hole everything inside five feet,” McIlroy said at the 2018 Masters. “You don’t need to hole every 15-footer that you look at, you need to be efficient, just not to be wasteful.”
Here’s the proof. Bubba Watson is generally regarded as one of the Tour’s weakest putters and he has two green jackets. Dig a little deeper and you’ll find that only one player in the past decade, Jordan Spieth, has won the Masters and finished that same year with a ranking inside the Top-10 on the PGA Tour for strokes gained putting. In fact, only four Masters Champions Danny Willett, Spieth, Charl Schwartzel and Angel Cabrera have managed to crack a spot in the Top-100 putters on Tour in the same year they claimed the green jacket.
To achieve the “efficient” putting McIlroy speaks of, Scott will have to improve his feel for the speed difference between uphill and downhill putts, which he admitted at last year’s Masters “is something I always struggle with at Augusta.”
His 2019 form with the flatstick shows plenty of promise though, with a strokes gained putting ranking of No.18 (through the end of February) and a No.1 ranking for putts made between 15 and 20 feet.
5. AN OUNCE OF LUCK
Gary Player famously once said: “The harder I work the luckier I get.” Every Masters Champion can look back at one shot, one moment where they ‘got the rub of the green’ and they had an inkling it was their time to claim the title. “You need a little bit of winner’s luck. I think everyone who wins a tournament who has it, but it’s not something you can make happen, unless you practice hard like Gary Player said, then you get luckier,” Scott said on the eve of 2016 Masters. “But I guess it just happens and when it’s meant to be, it’s meant to be.“So it just happens. I don’t know, that stuff, you can’t control, but I think the golfing Gods sort all that kind of stuff out.” The golfing Gods were there when Fred Couples’ ball stayed above the water line next to the 12th green in 1992. Likewise, Scotty had similar good fortune in 2013 when his approach into the par-5 13th green spun back towards the water hazard and stopped on a blade of grass. “I caught a good break in the final round in 2013,” he said. “I hit a 7-iron well and thought it was fine, but I pushed it a few yards. The ball hit and spun back toward the creek. Luckily, it somehow held up on the bank, and I made birdie. “When you win tournaments, you often get a bit of luck. That was mine right there.” The legendary NFL coach Vince Lombardi once said, “Champions make their own luck,” which might ring true again for Scott on the hallowed grounds of Augusta National Night Golf Club.
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