Early starters finish under par at windy Masters

AUGUSTA, Georgia — Russell Henley and Kevin Chappell could be a rarity on a blustery day at the Masters.

Both were pretty pleased with themselves after their strong starts at Augusta National, considering the conditions. They shot 1-under 71s with the winds blowing heavily throughout the opening round Thursday. Patrons had a hard time holding onto their hats, flags atop the pins could be heard snapping in the wind and trees that line the course consistently waved as golfers walked past.

Henley and Chappell were the early low scorers on a day when few could stay significantly below par due to the strong gusts that bent shots and played havoc with golfers trying to judge proper distance.

“There was a lot of thinking out there,” said Chappell, who was at 2-under before a bogey on the 18th hole knocked him back.

“I hope conditions stay playable,” Chappell said. “I’m sure there’ve been some gusts where balls are moving on. But anytime you shoot under par around here under any condition, it’s a good score.”

It certainly was — only 12 golfers were under par midway through the opening round.

Henley was simply excited to be teeing off. His win last week at the Houston Open got him into the Masters and he had the first tee time right after the sombre honorary start ceremony that was a tribute to the late Arnold Palmer.

“I still can’t believe I’m here and next thing you know I’m behind the ceremonial tee shot,” Henley said.

It quickly Henley.

He had to contend with the winds that went one way on one hole and a different direction the next. Henley opened with two birdies on his first four holes, then fell back with consecutive bogeys on the 10th and 11th holes. Just as quickly, Henley recovered with birdies on the 12th, 13th and 14th holes. A bogey on the 17th hole left Henley at 1-under par, matching his second lowest score in 11 career rounds at Augusta National.

Henley said the wind may have been the toughest around Amen Corner — the nickname for Augusta’s famed 11th, 12th and 13th holes. Henley said he was about to take out a 5-iron for a 200-yard approach, figuring he would need some extra punch to get it close the green. Instead, he hit it over the green leading to a bogey. “It was really rough,” he said. Chappell, making his second ever Masters appearance, matched his career low at Augusta, twice shooting 71 on the way to a 44th-place finish in 2012. got very real for