Kisner back where ‘it’ all began
Gusting winds and cool temperatures made the always challenging Augusta National course even tougher during the Masters, and Kevin Kisner left the year’s first major with memories of “an awesome experience” and yet spent both mentally and physically.
“The golf course just beats you up,” he said. “I got home (in nearby Aiken) Sunday night and just lay on the floor.”
He probably needed another week off from the PGA Tour to be fully refreshed, but the RBC Heritage came next on the calendar and skipping the event would be unthinkable. He loves both the tournament and the Harbour Town course.
And, besides, this is where it all started a year ago.
“It” is his rocket ride to the stars, from relative obscurity to a place of prominence in professional golf. Kisner, 32, used his performance in the 2015 Heritage, a playoff loss to Jim Furyk for the title, to jumpstart his rise from the 250s to the top 25 in the world golf rankings.
The good news in the 48th Heritage that ends Sunday: “My game is better than last year,” he said. The bad: “I can’t make a putt.”
His putting is not “that” bad, at least statistically. He is 41st in the “strokes gained: putting” category. But with the rest of his game sizzling, those misses are an irritant.
“I’ve changed my routine, I’ve changed my putter, I’ve changed my setup, and nothing is working,” he said after Thursday’s 1-over-par 72. “My putting is as bad as I can remember. Even my good ones don’t go in.”
The Aiken native, who has a home adjacent to the famed Palmetto Golf Club, matched par 71 on Friday to make the cut, but his -0.549 in the strokes gained: putting category give reason for his chagrin.
Imagine the possibilities if he gets his putting to match the remainder of his better-than-last-year game. He’s a different player today, both in achievement and outlook. Since he left Hilton Head last April, he has won his first PGA Tour title, had four seconds and posted 10 top-10 finishes in 40 tournaments. He ranks fourth in the current FedEx Cup point standings and 23rd in the world rankings.
A final-round 64 in the 2015 Heritage provided the visual evidence. Even though he lost the playoff, he birdied the 18th hole to tie for the lead, then birdied the tough par-4 again in the playoff before Furyk earned the title with a birdie on the second playoff hole, the 17th.
But the real spur came behind the scenes. Kisner traces his about-face to advice from John Tillery. He came to Hilton Head a year ago with the words his swing coach ringing in his ears: Prepare to compete. Prepare to win. Go into tournaments with a mindset to win.
“That’s what I did,” Kisner said. “I changed my focus. I had a completely different outlook. Sometimes you think more about making cuts than winning, and I go into tournaments now looking to win. That’s my mindset.”
Indeed, in a pre-tournament meeting with the media, he said, “I feel strongly I can win here and win her multiple times. And if I play the way I know I can play, I should be in contention come Sunday.”
That’s the new Kisner – back where “it” started.
Chip shots
Tommy Gainey (Hartsville) stood at 4-under-par through 10 holes to pull within two strokes of the lead in Friday’s second round before suffering a lower back injury on No. 11. He finished the hole with a quadruple-bogey 8 and had to withdraw. . . . The PGA Tour returns to the Carolinas in less than three weeks with the Wells Fargo Championship in Charlotte on May 5-8. The latest commitment is Columbia native Dustin Johnson, the No. 8 player in the world who will be at Quail Hollow for the first time since 2011. Other top-10 players who have committed include defending champion Rory McIlroy (No. 3) and Adam Scott (No. 7), a two-time winner on the PGA Tour this year. For ticket information, go online towww.wellsfargochampionship.com.
This story was originally published April 16, 2016 at 9:47 PM with the headline "Kisner back where ‘it’ all began."