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You can perhaps understand why Craig Wood suffered such a shocker in the first round in 1936, still shaken no doubt by what had happened to him the year before. Allow me to explain / plagiarise myself. Wood had missed out on the inaugural title in 1934 by one stroke, but looked odds-on to win in 1935, in the clubhouse with a three-shot advantage over his only real challenger. But that challenger was Gene Sarazen, who was still out on the course, in the middle of the par-five 15th having clattered a 250-yard drive down the 485-yard hole. He was playing with Walter Hagen, who upon hearing the news of Wood’s clubhouse mark, cried: “Well, that’s that!” Sarazen shrugged and replied: “They might go in from anywhere.” Whereupon he drew his 4-wood back and landed his second on the front of the green, the ball rolling to the far-right corner and into the cup for an albatross (or a double eagle, as the locals would have it). Now level with Wood, he parred his way in, then breezed the 36-hole play-off. His albatross became known as The Shot Heard Round The World, and one which put the Augusta National Invitation Tournament on the map.
Poor old Nick Dunlap had a bit of a shocker yesterday. An 18-over round of 90 that featured four double bogeys and a triple. Seven bogeys, just six pars. “He’s a very talented chap,” begins Simon Thomas, “Golf is hard. He’s got a bit of ground to make up; by my reckoning he needs to find at least 16 shots today if he’s to make the weekend. A 56 today then.” Well, let’s see now. Craig Wood shot a first round of 88 in 1936, bouncing back with a 67 the next day. He finished in a tie for 20th, and went on to win the event in 1941. So there’s always hope I guess. Admittedly that still stands as the biggest contrasting start in Masters history, 89 years on, and Dunlap would have to better Jim Furyk’s all-time low PGA Tour score of 58 by two strokes to beat the cut. But let’s rule nothing out until it’s mathematically impossible.
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