AUGUSTA, Ga. — Rickie Fowler and Matt Kuchar each were hoping to win their first major championship Sunday, but left Augusta National disappointed with their performances in the final round of the 78th Masters.
Fowler shot a 1-over-par 73 to finish 2-under par for the tournament, tied for fifth with Kuchar, who closed with a 2-over par 74. Fowler got off to a promising start when he made a tricky downhill putt for birdie on the first hole to go 4-under. But he lost the shot by three-putting from 12 feet for bogey at the par-5 2nd hole. It began a frustrating day for Fowler.
“I had a good look on 2 and had a tough break with a lip out,” he said. “It was kind of a tough way to start.”
His only other birdie came at the par-4 14th.
“It was a rough driving day for me,” Fowler said. “I just hit four fairways. I got off to a nice start and definitely got a lot out of the round with how poorly I got it off the tee.”
Nonetheless, Fowler was pleased with being on the leaderboard at a major on Sunday. His best finish in three previous Masters was a tie for 27th in 2012. He also has missed four cuts this year on the PGA Tour.
“It’s a big step forward for me, especially after all these missed cuts I’ve had, to kind of grind it out and get on top of my game here,” he said. “I’m definitely happy with it.”
Kuchar began the day at 4-under par and looked like he might contend when he made birdie at the 2nd hole and another at the par-4 3rd hole to climb to 6-under. But a four-putt at the par-3 fourth hole produced a double bogey.
“I can’t recall the last time I four-putted,” Kuchar said. “I swallowed that pretty quickly and said, ‘That’s okay. I’m even par through four holes.’”
He never got much going after that and finished his round with bogeys at 17 and 18. Kuchar still managed his third consecutive top-10 finish at Augusta National.
“I don’t know how many opportunities you get at winning the Masters,” he said. “It’s one of those things you get in the situation and you hope to take advantage. But it’s a lot better in this position than playing early on Sunday, that’s for sure.”