AUGUSTA — Including five rounds while he was at UGA and three practice rounds this week, Sepp Straka played the golf course at Augusta National for a ninth time Thursday. But this was his first Masters round, and he felt the full effect of that over his last three holes of the day.
Coming to the par-3 16th tee at even par, Straka bogeyed there and again on No. 18. So, he had to sign for a first-round 74 in the scoring house, which for him was bittersweet but far from disappointing.
“In general, I hit the ball pretty good,” Straka said. “I hit my irons really good. I hit it terrible off the tee and don’t feel like I putted as well as I should have. So, overall, I’m pretty happy with the results I got.”
That was a common refrain from most of the Georgia Bulldogs. UGA had six alums playing in the 90-player field this field, more than any other school in the country. It would have been seven if Harris English were not injured. English qualified, but has been sidelined since undergoing to hip surgery Feb. 14.
But Straka was the only Bulldog making his first official loop in the 86th Masters. Ranked No. 72 in the world, he qualified after shooting a final-round 66 to win the Honda Classic last month.
Kevin Kisner, who finished late-afternoon was 3-over. Hudson Swafford, playing in his third Masters, shot 77. Russell Henley and Bubba Watson were low Bulldogs at 1-over apiece. Savannah’s Brian Harman looked to be set up for an under-par afternoon before bogeying three of his last four holes to match Straka’s 74
“I played a lot better than I scored, which is a real bummer,” Harman said. “You’ve got to score better than you play here to be in contention, and I just let a few get away from me coming down the stretch. Just plain tough. Happy with the way I’m playing. Just a little disappointed in my score.”
Straka plays under the flag of his native Austria, but he and his twin brother Sam moved with his family to Valdosta at age 14. Sepp and Straka both played for the Bulldogs. But it was after deciding to redshirt his junior year that Sepp’s game took off. He finished in the top 20 five times his senior season.
Now 28, it has been a long hard climb to the top. He played the Korn Ferry Tour through 2019 before playing in 25 PGA events in 2020. Last year he was cut in 19 of 31 events.
“You never know if any of these guys are going to win out there because it’s so hard to do,” said Chris Haack, Straka’s coach at Georgia. “So, in some regards, it’s a little bit of a surprise (Straka did). But, on the other hand, if you’ve got a tour card, you’ve got a chance like everybody else.”
Straka represented Austria in the Olympic Games last summer and finished one shot out for a bronze medal. He has made cuts in eight of his past nine PGA events.
“Sepp showed at the Olympics that he was getting more and more comfortable in the big arenas,” Haack said. “Now he’s making a lot of cuts, and when you start doing that and playing weekends, you start to push through. So, hopefully there’s more to come from him.”
Straka was on the famous Masters scoreboards for a while Thursday, making the turn at 1 under with a birdie on 9 that brought a rousing ovation from the huge crowd gathered around the green closest to the Augusta National clubhouse.
But Straka gave a stroke back on No. 10. He also bogeyed the par-3 12th before posting his final birdie of the day on par-5 13th, the easiest hole in Thursday’s opening round.
It was on the iconic 16th and 18th greens that Straka got a full dose of the menacing Masters. His approaches on both holes were mere feet away from being just right.
“On 16, I hit a pretty good shot,” he said. “If it was two more yards right or two yards farther, it probably would have been about 15 feet. But I took a slope and went down about 40 feet. Unfortunately, just hit that putt too hard.
“Similar thing on 18. I hit a good drive and hit a 7-iron up there that looked like it was pretty close to getting to the top, but it just came back down, and I had a sloppy three-putt.”
That’s how close Straka was to shooting par. Now he hopes to play well enough Friday to make the cut here. He feels like that’s a realistic expectation.
“For sure,” Straka said. “You can’t really control that until your last few holes. You just have to go out there and play your best golf on a course like this.”
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