Power buoyant after tied 27th finish on Masters debut
Seamus Power
SÉAMUS Power is already counting down the days to his Masters return after leaving the best for last and closing with an impressive two-under 70 on his debut.
The West Waterford star looked relaxed as he followed three successive 74s by making five birdies at Augusta National to finish tied 27th ($111,000) with Jon Rahm and Viktor Hovland on four-over-par.
It was a memorable week for the Tooraneena man, who almost joined Irish legends Pádraig Harrington and Shane Lowry in the hole-in-one club at the 16th when his seven-iron to the iconic 180-yard par-three took the slope and ran towards the cup, stopping just inches short of glory.
"Yes, I hit two great tee shots on 16 this week," he beamed afterwards. "I hit two of them very, very close. It was nice when it started to turn towards the hole.
"You were just hearing the crowd and seeing people stand up, but it was a lovely shot and it was nice to make a two, but I didn't quite make the one club there."
As for his overall feelings about the week, he had higher ambitions but can't wait to return next year.
"I was delighted," he said of his round. "It felt like a birdie-fest out there for me. I played nicely again. Similar stuff. I didn't quite get the putter going, but I played the par-fives much better, and that was the biggest difference.
"I was three-under for the par fives today, and it just changes your whole outlook on the course and then you can be more patient when you need to be patient."
Power went into the final round tied for 36th on six-under and took advantage of perfect conditions.
"This is more how you picture it - sunny weather and really fast greens and just a light breeze making it tricky," he explained. "It was beautiful out there."
He played the first poorly, missing the green left with his approach before failing to get up and down but made amends at the par-five second with a delightful 40-yard pitch to three feet.
He failed to birdie the third from the back fringe but then got up and down superbly from greenside sand left of the second, expertly splashing out to four feet.
He bogeyed the fifth after a poor three wood left him 250 yards to the green and he bunkered his approach long left, taking two to escape from the sand.
But he was quickly back on the birdie trail, finding the top right shelf at the 180-yard sixth before rolling in the putt.
He was unlucky to see his 15-foot birdie putt from the fringe at the seventh bobble on impact and stop a roll short, but then split the eighth fairway and played a delicate 43-yard pitch over a tier to just five feet.
He might have picked up another shot at the ninth but misread his 11-footer but was so upbeat he had time to ask a friend for the score between Manchester City and his beloved Liverpool.
"I heard it finished 2-2," he grinned. "I was hoping to see it, but I'd prefer to be playing golf here."
Two-putt pars followed at the tough 10th and 11th before his nemesis, the 155-yard 12th, cost him a shot for the third day running.
This time he found the back bunker and had to make a four-footer for bogey after flying the green with his recovery.
"Yeah, it's just a tricky one," he said. "It's just a tough hole and it's just so shallow. All four of my shots mid-air, I probably would've taken them.
"I hit four pretty good shots and I made three bogeys, but you are so worried about being short and I ended up being slightly long a couple of times.
"It's tough in that corner. You feel the wind one-way and then you get a little gust another way that it's tough. You've only got four or five yards to land it on and I was only able to connect on it once.
"It's something I'll learn from and hopefully, I'll be able to put it to better use next time."
A two-putt birdie from 44 feet at the par-five 13th got him back into the red for the day, and after making pars at the 14th and 15th, he made that two at the 16th, got up and down for par at the 17th after driving left under the trees and narrowly missed a 14 footer at the last.
Keen to return, he said: "Absolutely yes. It was an incredible week and I really enjoyed everything. Hopefully, we'll be able to come back."
However, he would not have settled for a top 30 finish at the start of the week.
"Probably not," he said. "I'd high hopes. It's one of those weeks. It's golf. Sometimes, it's not your week, and the putts don't drop. That's kind of how it was this week.
"I gave myself chances, but the putts didn't drop. So many times you leave it in the jaws. Even on 18, that tiny bit of speed and it runs across the top edge. Small margins."
As for the lessons he learned, he said: "You realise you have to hit very good shots. People tell you at 12 it has to be an exact shot and you think. 'It can't be that precise', but it is.
"You hit reasonably good shots, but you end up in tough spots. Whoever wins it is going to be deserving, the best player on the course."
He plans to take this week off before teaming up with Graeme McDowell for the Zurich Classic of New Orleans and starts to think about coming home for the Horizon Irish Open at Mount Juliet.
