Stricker battles hard

Madison golfer finishes at 75

AUGUSTA, Ga. – Steve Stricker couldn’t have gotten off to a worse start at the Masters on Thursday — a double-bogey on the first hole after his approach shot flew the green.

After a birdie on the par-5 second hole, his tee shot on the par-3 fourth also was long. He threw his arms up in the air in frustration when he saw where the ball landed, knowing full well how hard it would be to get up and down for par.

He made a bogey, then bogeyed No. 5.

Just when it appeared that the wheels might come off, Stricker, of Madison, Wis., settled down and played the final 13 holes in even par to finish with a 3-over 75. He was 10 shots behind leader Charley Hoffman but only four shots out of the top 10.

“It was a tough, tough day,” Stricker said. “It’s challenging just to get it on the green at times. It was a battle. Every hole’s a battle.”

Stricker was fooled by the wind several times, resulting in bogeys on Nos. 1, 4 and 18. On the last hole, his approach came up short of the green, he chipped to 10 feet and missed the putt.

“On 18, it should have been a helping wind,” he said. “But my ball went up in the air and got stood up. I thought I hit a good shot.”

Stricker, 50, said he was hitting the ball well and would keep battling in the second round Friday.

“Gotta just keep plugging away,” he said. “It’s going to be tough again tomorrow, I’m sure. Just gotta keep trying to make pars and hopefully slide in a birdie or two along the way.”