Second rounds haven’t been good for Matt Kuchar at the Masters.
The Georgia Tech graduate, who is playing in the tournament for the seventh time and fifth as a professional, has never broken 70 in the second round. After a 75 on Friday, he is averaging 73.86 in second-day play here.
But thanks to his first-round 68 on Thursday, he’ll made cut for sixth time in seven tries. And, at 1-under for the tournament, he will have a slugger’s chance to play himself back into contention.
“It was very tough out there today,” said Kuchar, who finished in a tie for third last year. “Fortunately the greens are still a bit receptive and that helps out a lot… . There were a couple of scary instances out there. But the greens were a bit soft, a little bit slower than what they could be, and that’s helpful.”
Kuchar had to fight to get in with a 75. His tee shot on the par-4 18th clipped a tree up the left side and failed to get to the fairway. But Kuchar was able to reach the green in three and one-putt for par.
“I’m glad to escape with a 4,” Kuchar said. “It was a left-to-right wind and I was trying to hold it up against the wind and got too close to the trees.”
In light of the swirling winds the golfers encountered Friday, Kuchar wasn’t overly disappointed.
“It’s difficult because there are a lot of holes where water is in play,” he said. “So it’s trick. You have to be so precise… . It’s tricky picking clubs for sure.”
Now safely in for the final two rounds, Kuchar said he doesn’t have any radical plans for shooting his way back onto the leaderboard.
“You can only do what you can with the course,” he said. “There’s no sense in being silly. You just play the shot that gives you the best chance to make a reasonable score out here. Your game plan doesn’t change. It’s just a matter of making putts.”
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