Arriving at Augusta, Watson is reinvigorated
AUGUSTA, G A. Bubba Watson hasn’t been himself for a while now.
First of all, he’s lost nearly 20 pounds, the result of keeping fried foods off his plate and sugar out of his mouth. And secondly, his results on the golf course have thinned out.
After winning the Northern Trust Open in February 2016 and finishing second in the World Golf Championships-Cadillac Championship two weeks later, Watson was the favorite heading into last year’s Masters. But he shot 75-75-76-71 and tied for 37th, which began a downward spiral. Starting at the Masters, Watson, the winner of nine PGA Tour titles, has but five top-10 finishes in 23 starts, with three missed cuts and one withdrawal.
After reaching a career-high No. 4 in the world golf rankings in March 2016, he hasn’t been in contention late on a Sunday since and has fallen to No. 18. And talk about favorites for the 81st edition of the Masters does not include Watson, the two-time winner of the green jacket. Instead, favorite status belongs to world No. 1 Dustin Johnson, No. 2 Rory McIlroy and 2015 Masters champion Jordan Spieth.
But familiar feelings came over Watson as he drove down Magnolia Lane, a calming warmth coming over him. The Masters winner in 2012 and 2014 perked up, memories rushing back about one of his favorite places in the world and one of his favorite events on the schedule.
“I feel good,” Watson said with a big smile. “I’m at Augusta.”
Watson, down to about 175 pounds, is still the eccentric guy who pokes fun at himself and golf ’s establishment. He’s still a giant kid at heart who will play a pink and greenish-yellow golf ball this week. But at Augusta, Watson, 38, can be the banger from Bagdad, Fla., again, tapping into his power, creative juices and imagination to tackle the 18 holes before him.
His confidence always goes up a notch on these sacred grounds, where he knows his ability to shape the ball both ways and launch it high or low give him an advantage. He knows his power, especially with his right-to-left cut shot, which is much easier to hit than a right-to-left draw by right-handers, can overpower the course.
Ted Scott, Watson’s longtime caddie, said three things happen to Watson when he steps on to these grounds.
“He’s an artist,” Scott said. “What place on earth has prettier colors, the brighter green of the grass and the contrast of the brown pine straw? That alone makes him so connected to Augusta National. He sees his targets much easier here. And he’s a die putter. It’s pretty easy to get the ball to the hole at Augusta. And on these greens, he can use his imagination to get the ball in the hole. He feels the putts. And lastly, his desire to win always goes up when he gets to the Masters.
“I’m not concerned about how he’s playing. Unless he’s injured. And he isn’t injured. There is no reason to think he won’t get back to his usual form at the Masters.”
Watson was a bit concerned.
“You keep playing bad golf, you have to figure something out,” Watson said after handing out trophies to kids competing in the Drive, Chip and Putt National Finals.
Watson, who has never had a swing coach, figured out his ball position was out of whack, leading to shots going astray. After discovering the ball was too forward in his stance at impact, he shot a 68 final round in the Arnold Palmer Invitational and then played nicely in the WGCDell Technologies Match Play in his last start.
He’s also in a good mood. For the third year in a row, Watson teamed with Masters member Lee Styslinger against Watson’s wife, Angie, and Masters member and former secretary of state Condoleezza Rice.
“We have a trophy,” Watson said. “Lee and I have our names on there. I have it in my trophy room. … We do total score. Everything counts. You putt it out. Angie loves the competition. I make up the rules even though Condoleezza’s the boss. The last two years we gave them 30 shots.” This year it was 40 shots. “Best way to start the week,” Watson said. “I just love this place.”