• The Masters, Round Four: Plays of the Day

Plays of the Day: Louis' historic albatross

April 8, 2012

Masters 2012: What They Said

Low-five

Want to know how to win The Masters? Well, if you want to follow the Phil Mickelson template, make the most of the par-fives. Before his round on Sunday, in his Augusta career Mickelson was +52 on par-threes, +30 on par-fours… and -163 on par-fives.

Four!

Mickelson's occasional trouble at those par-threes was in evidence at the fourth, when he hit his tee shot so far left that it cannoned off the side of the spectators' stand and ended up in the jungle. The grimace, and downtrodden "fore left" said it all. He took two attempts to get the ball out of the shrubbery, and wound up with a six. Want to know how not to win The Masters? That's it.

Oo yes

Louis Oosthuizen, playing in the penultimate group, would have wanted to fire a warning shot early on - and boy, did he manage it with an albatross at the second hole. That's the first recorded at the second in televised Masters history.

Mike check

Michael Vaughan, bless him, managed to snare an interview with Tiger Woods for the BBC at the end of his round. Right Michael, don't mess this up. Vaughan: "Well, Tiger, you've won this tournament three times..." Woods: "Four times, actually." Oh Mike.

Hole-y cow

If Rory McIlroy was going to endure a torrid time on any hole, you'd have expected it to be the tenth, where his meltdown went into overdrive last year. However, in 2012 he couldn't get it going on the first: playing it in double bogey-par-double bogey-bogey across the four days. Can't do much for your confidence starting like that.

Bo goes low

An absolutely terrific round of 64 from Bo Van Pelt took him from seven over to one under - and meant, for the second year in a row, he recorded two eagles on the final day. Brilliant golf, but must be more frustrating than anything, as it came from so far back.

Great Scott

Van Pelt managed an ace at 16 - and then, shortly after, Adam Scott repeated the trick, the ball taking a bit of a round-the-houses route before it dropped in the hole. If he hadn't putted quite so poorly on the first day, he'd have been right up there for the second year in succession. At the 17th, he chipped in from just off the green - not bad.

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