Aiken’s Kevin Kisner off to slow start at first Masters

When you’re playing the Augusta National Golf Club course, you don’t so much go into Amen Corner as you go down into Amen Corner.

The elevation change the Masters participants experience gives a very clear sense of entering into something. For golf fans, it means descending into the sport’s version of heaven. For Kevin Kisner on Thursday, it represented the opposite theological pole.

The 32-year-old from Aiken was even par as he walked to his second shot on No. 11, the opening hole of Amen Corner. As he walked up the fairway on No. 13, the closing hole of Augusta’s most famous stretch, he was 4-over-par and headed for worse.

Kisner finished his day with a 5-over 77, which marks both is best and worst professional rounds ever at the course since this is his first Masters. He trails leader Jordan Spieth by 11 shots, but he emerged from the experience emotionally unscathed at least.

“I can’t hit the ball any better than I did,” he said. “I hit a lot of fairways and a lot of good iron shots. My game plan was great. We hit the shots we wanted to. We hit the wrong club at 11, but I hit the shot I wanted to so how mad can you be? It was just a bad scoring day, and I just screwed up the momentum.”

The only two swings he was still chewing on as he left the course Thursday were his second and third shots at No. 11. The second shot put him in a bad spot behind the green. The third put him in the water in front of the green.

“I was trying to bump (the third shot) and it was off mud and wet from where it rained last night and I just caught it a touch thin and it just had no spin on it and went straight down to the water,” he said. “I was dead where I was. Just a silly mistake. I should have just chunked it up there around the front and made bogey.”

He followed that up with a bogey at No. 12 and bogeys at 15 and 16 to card a 41 on the back nine.

“My goal was just to get off to a decent start and go from there, and I wanted to play the back nine a little better and I just didn’t do it,” he said. “I followed my game plan just like I wanted to except I made no putts and I made a really silly mistake on 11 so I really can’t be that upset.”

Kisner’s “Welcome to the Masters” Moment came at the first hole when he was facing a treacherous six-foot putt for par. His putt scooted just past the rim.

“That’s all you get all day long is eight- to 10-footers for par that break a foot one way or another,” he said.

Kisner took 34 putts Thursday, more than all but five players in the field. (Ernie Els took 40 putts, not bad considering he took six, yes six, on the first hole alone.)

Kisner’s only two sub-par holes of the day came on an eagle at No. 2 and a birdie at No. 13.

“Yeah, I get a little crystal (for the eagle) don’t I? That’s what I’m talking about,” he said. “I hit a good shot in there and made the putt. That was it for the putts.”

Kisner will come into Saturday looking to make birdies and thinks if he shoots a 2-under, he’ll be around to play the weekend.

“That’s the goal,” he said.

Kisner didn’t blame first Masters nerves or a lingering back injury that he “tweaked” Tuesday.

His back “is a little stiff, but it’s fine. I hit the ball great and still had my distance. I can’t complain about that,” he said. “I thought it would be nerve wracking that it was.”

He also thought he’d make a few putts.

This story was originally published April 8, 2016 at 12:04 AM with the headline "Aiken’s Kevin Kisner off to slow start at first Masters."