A lot happened on Thursday at the Masters Tournament - here we bring you five things from the opening day of the year's first Major Championship that you might have missed...
Charley Hoffman – the par three king...
A lot of players identify the par fives here at Augusta as their scoring holes. At times today it looked like Hoffman was scoring on every hole at Augusta, but it was the par threes where the 40 year old really did the damage, birdieing all four of them. To sum up just how impressive a feat that is, the Las Vegas native is only the third player in Masters history to do that after Jerry Pate in 1977 and Loren Roberts in 2000.
Watch @hoffman_charley's first round in under three minutes. #themasters pic.twitter.com/jwlkU5OjF8
— Masters Tournament (@TheMasters) April 6, 2017
When Mickelson starts well here, he wins…
The name of Mickelson is one the rest of the field take notice of when it appears on the leaderboards dotted around this fine golf course. So when ‘Lefty’ got off to a fast start and moved to three under par through four holes, people began to take notice.
Although the three time Masters champion finished on one under par, the rest of the field should still be wary. Very wary, in fact, considering the last three times the 46 year old has finished tied fourth or better after the first round of The Masters over the last 15 years, he has gone onto win twice, in 2006 and 2010. You have been warned guys.
William McGirt might be a rookie, but he knows Augusta…
Rookie William McGirt made a great start in his first Masters, posting a 69 to sit second by himself after day one. However, unlike most of the other rookies here this week, McGirt had already played Augusta a few times before this week, thanks to the fact that the 37 year old hails from nearby North Carolina.
“I actually came down here twice last December, then once in March and then last Friday again. I’ve obviously be practising this week as well so it has really helped me get a good look at this place.”
With local knowledge key around this tricky golf course, McGirt’s jaunts certainly helped him a lot on Thursday at The Masters.
The amazing brand new Media Centre…
If you were lucky enough to come through the gates at Augusta as a patron for the first round you might have wondered where all the journalists were. Well, we can assure you we’re all here, however such are the comforts of the incredible new Media Centre here at Augusta, that some of the press spent most of the day inside thehuge hotel-like complex.
While at the European Tour we like to be active and get about the complex, we certainly can’t blame any member of the media who decides to make the most of the outstanding facilities on offer at the far end of the driving range, which include a fully-equipped restaurant and memorabilia from throughout Masters history.
If you don’t believe us, take a look for yourselves:
