logo
  • Search
  • News
    • Opinion
    • Tournaments
      • Australian PGA Championship
      • Australian Open
      • The Masters
      • The Open Championship
      • PGA Championship
      • Presidents Cup
      • U.S. Open
      • 2020 Olympics
    • Video
  • Equipment
    • TopTracer Range
    • Hot List
    • Brands
      • Bridgestone
      • Bushnell Golf
      • Callaway
      • Cleveland Golf
      • Club Car
      • Cobra Puma Golf
      • Concourse
      • Ecco
      • FootJoy
      • Mizuno
      • Ping
      • Srixon
      • Titleist
      • Volvik
    • Accessories
    • Balls
    • Club Fitting
    • Drivers
    • Fairway Woods
    • Fashion
      • Autumn / Winter
      • Spring / Summer
    • Glove Fitting
    • Hybrids
    • Irons
    • Putters
    • Shoe Fitting
    • Wedges
  • Travel
    • Play Here Stay Here
    • Visit Victoria
    • Play Golf Newcastle
    • 2020/21 Top 100
    • Australia
    • International
  • Play Your Best
    • Instruction
    • Instruction Video
    • Golf Rules
  • The Magazine
    • Read the latest issue
    • Mailing List
    • Advertise With Us
    • Locker Room
    • Shop
  • TV
    • Greg Norman
  • Shop
  • Subscribe
 logo
Lost your password?
  • News
    • Opinion
    • Tournaments
      • Australian PGA Championship
      • Australian Open
      • The Masters
      • The Open Championship
      • PGA Championship
      • Presidents Cup
      • U.S. Open
      • 2020 Olympics
    • Video
  • Equipment
    • TopTracer Range
    • Hot List
    • Brands
      • Bridgestone
      • Bushnell Golf
      • Callaway
      • Cleveland Golf
      • Club Car
      • Cobra Puma Golf
      • Concourse
      • Ecco
      • FootJoy
      • Mizuno
      • Ping
      • Srixon
      • Titleist
      • Volvik
    • Accessories
    • Balls
    • Club Fitting
    • Drivers
    • Fairway Woods
    • Fashion
      • Autumn / Winter
      • Spring / Summer
    • Glove Fitting
    • Hybrids
    • Irons
    • Putters
    • Shoe Fitting
    • Wedges
  • Travel
    • Play Here Stay Here
    • Visit Victoria
    • Play Golf Newcastle
    • 2020/21 Top 100
    • Australia
    • International
  • Play Your Best
    • Instruction
    • Instruction Video
    • Golf Rules
  • The Magazine
    • Read the latest issue
    • Mailing List
    • Advertise With Us
    • Locker Room
    • Shop
  • TV
    • Greg Norman
  • Shop
  • Subscribe
Patrick Smith

Masters 2020: Cameron Smith makes Augusta history and still doesn’t get a green jacket

Brian WackerNovember 16, 2020
GolfNewsThe Masters0 Comments

Cameron Smith made history today at the Masters, becoming the first player in the 84 editions of the tournament to shoot four rounds in the 60s at Augusta National.

“That’s pretty cool,” he said, a smile coming across his face when he was told that no one – from Ben Hogan to Sam Snead to Tiger Woods – had accomplished the feat.

Unlike that trio of past Masters champions, though, it wasn’t enough to capture the green jacket. Not even close.

Dustin Johnson put on an historic performance of his own, shooting a final-round four-under 68 to finish the week at 268 to break the Masters’ 72-hole scoring record by two strokes. His four bogeys in the four rounds were also the fewest by a champion in the event’s history and his 20-under total matched the lowest total relative to par in Major championship history, tying Jason Day at the 2015 PGA Championship and Henrik Stenson at the 2016 Open Championship.

Smith’s total, meanwhile, would have won all but seven Masters tournaments. Instead, he finished five strokes behind.

“I honestly can’t believe it,” said Smith, who shot 67-68-69-69 to share runner-up honours with Masters rookie Sungjae Im and had no idea he’d put his name into the record book until being told after the round. “Just got to put it down to just scrambling and digging deep. There were a few times throughout week where I could have let it slip away, and it didn’t.”

That included today.

Photo: Jamie Squire

While the outcome was all but decided coming down the stretch, early on Smith did his part to at least provide some drama, knocking a wedge to six feet to set up a birdie on the par-5 second and then sticking his approach on the par-4 third for another birdie to cut Johnson’s lead to just two.

Then on the par-4 seventh, the Queenslander shoved his tee shot right and into the trees. But he made a spectacular recovery, launching his next shot over the trees, the ball settling 10 feet from the flag for the most unlikely of birdies.

Two holes later, another terrific recovery shot. Standing on the slippery pine straw right of the ninth fairway, Smith smacked his approach onto the bank just left of the green, squatted down and watched as the ball curled back onto the putting surface and next to the hole.

“I knew I had to keep the pressure on Dustin and wasn’t here to finish second, basically,” he said. “There was a small gap up [on the seventh hole]. The club was pretty good. Just had to hit it really hard and good, and it turned out well.”

Not all of the shots, did, though. Smith’s second to the 11th missed the green right and he wasn’t able to get up and down after his chip checked up eight feet short. Then, after laying up on the 13th, his 15-footer for birdie missed low and he settled for par.

On the 15th, with Johnson well on his way to victory, it looked like Smith might lose a shot at history, too, after over-hooking his second on the par 5 and landing left of the pond. But his short game saved him again and he got up and down for one last birdie.

With a final scrambling par on the 18th, Smith had done what so many before him hadn’t.

Since the first Masters in 1934, more than 6,600 players have pegged it up in the tournament, with more than 4,200 playing all four rounds. Forty-one times, a player has recorded three rounds in the 60s. Among them: three-time Masters champion Phil Mickelson, who has done it on four occasions, as well as 2018 winner Patrick Reed, who shot 69-66-67 before closing with a 71.

Comparatively, a player shooting all four rounds in golf’s three other Majors has happened 50 times, and there’s not another event on the PGA Tour schedule where it hasn’t happened.

As for Smith, the week still couldn’t help but feel a little bittersweet.

“It would have been cool to do that and win,” said Smith, who tied for fifth at Augusta in 2018. “I’d take 15-under around here the rest of my career and I might win a couple.

“It’s a massive confidence boost. Shame I’m not going to play a tournament for a couple of months.”

Not to worry, the next Masters is just five months away.

RELATED: Complete 2020 Masters coverage

 

Augusta National Golf ClubCameron SmithDustin JohnsonMasters TournamentSungjae Im

Related Posts

  • Masters 2020: Dustin Johnson gets his Major redemption, and 17 other parting thoughts from Augusta

    Daniel RapaportNovember 17, 2020
  • For golf instructors, a technology debate rages on

    Matthew RudyApril 20, 2017
  • How the Travellers landed its impressive field, the man behind Brooks and DJ and the call for shorter par 4s

    Brian WackerJune 22, 2017
  • Dustin Johnson: Short Game

    Dustin Johnson: Become A Complete Player

    Dustin JohnsonJuly 2, 2019
  • Australian contingent favoured at Asia-Pacific Amateur

    StaffAugust 28, 2019
  • Butch Harmon: Driving Instruction

    Butch Harmon: Driving For Distance

    Butch HarmonNovember 15, 2019
  • Cameron Champ’s driving stats were off the charts during his full-time PGA Tour debut

    Alex MyersOctober 9, 2018
  • Kevin Kisner, Scott Brown one back at Zurich Classic, while marquee names miss the cut

    Christopher PowersApril 28, 2018

Leave a Reply Cancel Reply

Your email address will not be published.

Twitter 3,626Followers
Facebook 86,337Fans
Instagram 5,020Followers
Youtube 968Subscriber
Post 8,738Post

Latest posts

Torrey Pines specialist Jason Day returns with new coach and mixed sticks

January 27, 2021

New Mizuno ST drivers, fairway woods focus on player-specific needs

January 27, 2021

Davis Love III is the perfect choice to captain the 2022 US Presidents Cup team in his home state

January 27, 2021

Social media

Search

Newsletter

This form needs Javascript to display, which your browser doesn't support. Sign up here instead
  • The Magazine
  • Subscribe
  • Advertise With Us
  • Privacy Policy
  • Contact Us
  • GolfDigest.com