Garcia and Gonzo stray off course
Strong first rounds from the Spanish pair on Thursday had come on the 14th anniversary of Olazabal’s and the 30th anniversary of the late Seve Ballesteros’s second Masters victories in 1999 and 1983, respectively. And such was the feelgood factor following Garcia’s 66 and Gonzo’s 68 there was plenty of talk about a fifth Masters title going to Spain.
Could Spain rekindle its love affair with the Masters? Fernandez-Castaño certainly thought so.
“Just being here and being able to play the Masters is a dream come true, the 32-year-old from Madrid said. “When I played it for the first time last year, my only goal for the season was to play good enough to just be back in 2013. And I’m glad to be here because the Masters Tournament means a lot to Spanish golf. We’ve got, what, four green jackets. I’ve got none, but Spanish golf has got four green jackets.”
His opening four-under-par 68 had been, he said, “a great round” as he broke par for the first time in his second Masters, his debut 12 months ago getting progressively more difficult as he carded a 74-75-76-77. “So that’s a very positive thing and a great start of this year’s Masters. So looking forward to the next three rounds.”
A birdie at the opening hole of his second round yesterday carried on the good vibes but Fernandez-Castaño wobbled over the rest of his front nine, bogeying the par-four third after overcooking his approach and then two-putting. Further bogeys followed at the seventh and ninth but the Spaniard showed some fighting spirit. A birdie came at the 10th, followed by another at the 15th to get back to four under, a tantalising two shots off the lead, only for a bogey-bogey finish to send Fernandez-Castaño back into the pack with a 74, two under par at the halfway stage of the tournament, yet still in upbeat mood.
Garcia had also dropped two shots on his front nine, back-to-back bogeys on three, where he did well to save bogey after missing the green with both his approach from a fairway bunker and the subsequent chip, and the par-three fourth, where his tee shot found the bunker and he failed to get up and down.
That 14-year Spanish drought at the Masters applies to all majors, with Garcia having carried his country’s hopes for much of the intervening period, his obvious potential for greatness never quite translating into the game’s biggest prizes as he racked up 16 top-10 finishes in the majors, including three runners-up spots, two of which were to Pádraig Harrington.
Last year’s trip to the Masters was equally frustrating with Garcia, now 33, admitting after a weekend of frustration that he would never win a major. After closing rounds of 75-71 Garcia had finished tied for 12th, his best finish in the Masters since 2004 but a year on, the smiles had returned and after that opening bogey-free 66, he was reminded of his 2012 outburst.
“Well, it’s obviously not my most favourite place, but you know, we try to enjoy it as much as we can. Sometimes it comes out better than others, but today it was one of those good days. And you know, let’s enjoy it while it lasts.”
The resignation of a year ago and the realism of Thursday night certainly seemed well-founded yesterday as Garcia failed to resurrect his second round on the back nine, his slow slide down the leaderboard playing out with an air of sad inevitability.
Two more bogeys came at the 11th, a par-four that has been a constant thorn in his side over 15 Masters appearances, managing only two birdies in 49 visits, as well as the par-five 13th, the exit-point of Amen Corner that has been just the opposite down the years, producing just four bogeys to give Garcia an aggregate of 18 under there.
Yesterday he took a six around that dogleg left, parring his way home from there for a 76, 10 shots worse than his opening round.
“Much more difficult today,” Garcia said, “very gusty winds. “it was not only the strength (of the wind) because if it’s consistent you kiind of figure it out, but unfortunately today it was very very gusty.
“I was trying to be as aggressive as I could but things just didn’t want to happen. The good thng is even with everything that went wrong, I felt like I hit the ball very nicely, other than a couple of holes.
“I hit some good putts that didn’t go in and I’m still hopefully its not too far away by today’s end.”
At two under par, neither Spaniard is out of the hunt for Masters glory this year. Yet one can only hope they followed Garcia’s advice and did indeed enjoy it while it lasted.
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