Five of the top nine at Augusta from Europe
It’s been 13 years since a player from Europe won the Masters. But after the first round at Augusta National, there is a distinct European flavor on the leaderboard.
England’s Lee Westwood (67) has a one-stroke lead. Among eight players within two shots are Sweden’s Peter Hanson (68), Scotland’s Paul Lawrie (69), Spain’s Miguel Angel Jimenez (69), and Italy’s Francesco Molinari (69).
The European who received the most attention entering the tournament, Rory McIlroy of Northern Ireland, started with a double-bogey and needed a birdie-birdie finish to shoot 71.
“It wasn’t the start that I wanted, obviously, but I’m happy with the way I finished,” McIlroy told the Golf Channel.
Another Euro who finished at 71 was the story much of the day. Sweden’s Henrik Stenson made a pair of eagles on the front nine and got to 6-under par, leading by as many as three shots before imploding at No. 18. He pulled his tee shot into the trees, needed two shots to escape, missed the green with a wedge, and three-putted.
A European presence at Augusta is nothing new. From 1980-99, players from Europe won 11 of 20 green jackets, including three by England’s Nick Faldo and two each by Germany’s Bernhard Langer and Spaniards Seve Ballesteros and Jose Maria Olazabal.
But it took players from Europe a while to Master Augusta. The first 43 Masters were played without a European winner before Ballesteros’ breakthrough in 1980.
It was commonly believed that Europeans were in awe of Augusta National, a sentiment Westwood addressed after his round.
“Thirteen years ago the place comes as a shock,” Westwood said. “Big, expansive greens. You’re amazed by how fast the greens are. Amazed at how conservative you have to be a lot of the time. You have to play away from flags.”
