Texas Children's Houston Open

Memorial Park Golf Course



The Loop

Lyle's promising start turns sour

April 09, 2010

AUGUSTA, Ga. -- With an expression that exuded more exasperation than frustration, Sandy Lyle employed a bit of gallows humor to sum up his disappointing second-round 86.

"It was like playing with a square golf ball," noted the 52-year-old Scotsman. "I never got anything going all day."

The 1987 Masters champions was among the seniors who sparkled Thursday, making his way around Augusta National GC with a 69 to sit in a tie for 12th place. But with a double bogey on the first hole Friday, the tone of his second round was set. Three more doubles on the front side caused Lyle to turn in 10 over.

His bad luck continued on the back nine, where a triple-bogey 6 on the 12th hole (the second to last  of the seven 6s he made on the day) encapsulated the round. Lyle's tee shot on the par 3 plugged in the back bunker. Unable to get out of the sand with his second shot, he proceeded to skull his third into Rae's Creek.

"It was a cast where I just lost the rhythm completely," Lyle said. "I just couldn't regroup. ... And everything gets magnified out here. Things like that are relentless There's nothing you can do."

-- *Ryan Herrington