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AUGUSTA, GEORGIA | If the Masters is truly about the experience, Xander Schauffele has built up a lifetime of experience recently.
In 2019, Schauffele admitted he was shaken by the fact he was tied for the lead with three holes remaining in the final round. And it caused a poor finish.
With the chance to flip what had been a seven-shot deficit to eventual champion Hideki Matsuyama on Sunday, Schauffele let it happen again.
This time, it was a triple bogey at the par-3 16th hole moments after Schauffele had pulled to within two of Matsuyama, who was struggling to finish after building a huge lead. Schauffele hit his tee shot in the water, pitched his third shot over the green and walked away having tossed away his final chance to win.
“I fought hard,” Schauffele said. “I felt like I made it exciting at the end, hit a really good shot on 16. I committed to it. I hit a perfect shot. We thought it was down, left-to-right. It was not down, left-to-right. And the rest is history.”
Schauffele seemed to fade from the storyline early with bogeys at the third and fourth holes followed by a double bogey at No. 5 that left him seven behind Matsuyama and just one of several players seemingly out of contention.
But four consecutive birdies starting at the 12th – combined with Matsuyama’s tentative finish – sent Schauffele to the 16th tee with momentum, having just made a birdie from a greenside bunker at the 15th.
“It’s hard to win out here, especially at this tournament,” Schauffele said. “I think I’ll throw 16 in the memory bank. I think a lot of great shots into 16 are left-to-right. High cuts into that mound. I’ve been hitting a good high cut all week. I just didn’t think of it at that time. I hit like a hard-draw 8-iron, and it wasn’t the shot.
“Moving forward, just kind of throw it in the memory bank. I’m going to keep collecting thoughts. Hopefully, I keep coming back here for years to come, and the goal is to win one day.”
Ron Green Jr.