Brandt Snedeker didn’t break down and sob like he did in 2008, when a final-round collapse left him in a tie for third at the Masters. This time it was his 2-year-old daughter Lily who did the crying.
“I guess we’re just tearful,” said the Nashville native and Vanderbilt graduate.
Snedeker had reason to be upset. He briefly was tied for the lead in the final round of the 77th Masters and was very much in contention when he made the turn. But a lip-out for par on the 10th hole led to a 3-over-par stretch over the first five holes of the back nine. Just like that, Snedeker’s Masters dreams were washed away again.
“You know, it’s just a tough day,” said Snedeker, who shot 75 on Sunday to go from third-round leader to a tie for sixth. “I really actually played pretty well. The greens really messed me up. I was so used to how fast they were yesterday and I left every putt short out there today.
“I could not get a putt to the hole. I did not do a good job of making adjustments and I’m disappointed. I was there for one reason — to win — and I didn’t do it and I watched (playing partner) Angel (Cabrera) play great. It was very, very disappointing.”
Snedeker played slightly better than he did in ’08, when he shot a 77 on Sunday to fall four strokes behind first-time winner Trevor Immelman, who won with a 280. This time he shot 75 and once again finished at 284, 4 under for the tournament.
“It’s different,” said Snedeker, a five-time winner on the PGA Tour. “I’m not as crushed as I was in 2008 because I know I’m going to be there again. I know this golf course so well and I putted about as poorly as I could today and I still had a chance on the back nine.
“So I’m very disappointed that I didn’t win, but I realize that I’m not that far off from winning this thing. I’m going to do it soon.”
Starting the day tied with Cabrera for the 54-hole lead, Snedeker birdied No. 1 to get the outright lead, then shared it with Cabrera through three holes. He went out in 36 and made the turn very much in contention.
But Snedeker missed the green at 10 and, after he put himself in position to save par with a chip to three feet, his putt from above the hole lipped out.
“That was pretty tough,” he said. “I fought my way back there. … That’s just me being tentative and not using the speed of the greens.”
Even after the gaffe at 10, Snedeker still had Amen Corner and plenty of scoring chances ahead. His bogey at 11 was understandable. It was fourth toughest hole of the day, yielding just five birdies and 14 bogeys. But on the par-5 13th, he hit his second shot into a skinny part of Rae’s Creek and scrambled to save par.
With a bogey at 14, Snedeker knew his opportunities were dwindling. A birdie at 15 was too little too late and a bogey on 18 kept him from finishing in a tie for fourth.
Snedeker knows that at least, he’ll be back to give the Masters another go next year. He has often said he wants to win at Augusta more than anywhere else, so he was asked if maybe he wants to win it too much.
“No, I didn’t want it too much at all,” Snedeker said. “I’m going to tell you this until I’m blue in the face. If I wanted it too much, I would have played horrible today. I would have got off to a difficult start and done a bunch of stupid stuff.
“I didn’t do that. I played really well, within myself, I managed my game plan really well. I just putted terrible. Period. I hit two loose swings and I putted awful. You can’t win a golf tournament if you do that.”
About the Author
