Notebook: Donald holds on to win Par 3 Contest
AUGUSTA -- Luke Donald apparently isn’t too worried about the Par-3 tournament curse.
In the tournament’s history, no player has won the Par-3 tournament and the Masters tournament in the same year. But Donald sprinted to a 5-under-par 22 on Wednesday and then held on to win by one shot. Donald is playing in his seventh Masters tournament, with his best finish as a tie for third in his first appearance.
Raymond Floyd and Angel Cabrera finished tied for second at 4 under while four players finished at 3 under.
“Some short shots that you hit out here are similar to the course, so that’s why I play some years,” Donald said. “I think it’s good preparation. If you’re hitting wedges close, it’s only a good thing.”
Martin Kaymer, the No. 1 ranked player in the world, said Donald is the player to watch this week.
“It’s a big compliment coming from the world’s best ranked player right now,” Donald said. “So you feed off comments like that. I think when your peers are speaking highly about something, you can feed off it and make yourself believe that you’re better than you might even think you are.”
Donald is ranked fourth in the world entering this week. He could leave Augusta National Golf Club as the top-ranked player in the world if he wins.
He tees off Thursday at 12:53 with Fred Couples and Steve Stricker.
“The game is fine,” Donald said. “I’ve been preparing well. I feel coming into this week like I’m playing as good as I’ve been coming into this tournament. So I have some good results behind me the last few weeks, and I’m looking forward to it.”
Having a little fun
Ryder Cup teammates Bubba Watson and Rickie Fowler messed around with each other during the Par-3 tournament.
Playing one group ahead of Fowler, Watson stood at the first hole and held the flag, jokingly taunting Fowler to hit him with his tee shot.
Fowler said he tried to hit Watson but missed.
Watson did the same thing on the final hole of the day, standing near the cup and holding the flag. The second time, Fowler landed his ball past the hole and nearly rolled it back in for a hole-in-one.
“I was trying to make it (on No. 9),” Fowler said. “But Bubba gave me a bad read.”
Fowler shot 3 under, finishing two shots back of Donald.
Lessons from dad
Jeff Overton might want to consider letting his father sub in on the par-3 holes this week.
During the Par-3 tournament, Ron Overton was caddying for his son, who is playing in his first Masters this week.
The elder Overton promptly dropped a near perfect shot just above the hole and rolled it to within 3 feet.
Amateur’s special moment
U.S. Amateur champion Peter Uihlein had a big crowd watching his practice round Wednesday.
Uihlein, 21, played with Phil Mickelson, Fred Couples and Ricky Fowler. The junior from Oklahoma State got another memorable moment when the foursome paused for a photo atop Hogan Bridge before putting out on No. 12.
Uihlein, the top-ranked amateur in the world in 2010, is paired with Mickelson and Geoff Ogilvy for the first two rounds of The Masters.
Watson and Woodland
Tom Watson and Gary Woodland played together in Wednesday’s practice round. Between the two, they have made 37 Masters appearances -- all by Watson. But while Woodland is playing in his first Masters, he has turned his third season on the PGA Tour into a breakout year.
Woodland sits fourth on the money list, with four top-10s and a victory at the Transitions Championship in March. He also ranks eighth on the tour in both driving distance and birdies per round.
Woodland tees off in the final group at 1:59 p.m. on Thursday, along with Jhonattan Vegas and Alvaro Quiros.
This story was originally published April 7, 2011 at 12:00 AM with the headline "Notebook: Donald holds on to win Par 3 Contest."