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Commentary: Augusta (and green jackets) a natural fit for Bubba

BUBBA AT THE MASTERS

2008: T20

2009: 42

2010: DNP

2011: T38

2012: 1

2013: T50

2014: 1

Bubba Watson isn't the first golfer whose game and psyche seem tailor-made for Augusta National and the Masters.

Augusta likes players who can bang it, but really loves the guys who also can carve it. Unlike most of those made-for-Augusta golfers who came before him, you can point to two specific shots — one carve, one bang — to prove Watson's natural fit.

First, the wedge. Three years ago in a playoff with Louis Oosthuizen, Watson's tee shot on the second hole of sudden death (the par-4 No. 10) sailed wide right among the ancient, towering pines. His wildly hooking wedge from the forest found the green and ended up 15 feet from the hole. His playoff victory cemented that shot among the greatest (or at least most famous) in golf history.

Then last year, the drive. On the dogleg-left, par-5 No. 13, Bubba decided against the carve and went for the bang, aiming directly over the pines at the dogleg's corner, where bogeys and worse lurk in the creek below and the woods to the left. The distance of the drive has been estimated between 360 and 370 yards. Whatever, it was big, maybe a bit lucky to get through the pines. It left him with a wedge to the par-5, where he left with birdie on his way to a second Masters victory.

The ability to turn Augusta National into a par-68 is something the "home run hitters" have enjoyed for generations, but the list of past Masters winners includes plenty of players of average (and less) length. Watson's affinity for Augusta isn't because of its two-shot par-5s, but similar to what Phil Mickelson enjoys — it's the joy of creativity, which may or may not have something to do with both men being left-handed golfers.

"If you look at the golf course ... it's lighter rough — the pine straw, which is better than rough," Watson said. "So you can hit solid contact and be creative with your contact out of pine straw over rough. And then you look at the trees — it's not like there are a lot of branches down below. So there are gaps that you can pull off shots, kind of like I pulled off on (No.) 15 last year (also on Sunday), under the limbs, over the water."

Remember, Seve Ballesteros, acknowledged as the game's best-ever troubleshooter, also had an unmatched love for Augusta National.

"When you get into the high rough that most tournaments try to create, it takes away shot making," Bubba said. "It makes you chip out and so when you go to Augusta, the high trees with no limbs and not really much rough ... if you hit in the pine straw, you can still maneuver the ball out and make solid contact to hit creative shots.

"And then it's Augusta National, so my juices start flowing. And sometimes, I've been able to pull off some of the shots that you shouldn't be able to pull off just because of my energy level, and I get pumped up and I become a kid again."

Ken Willis writes for the Daytona Beach (Florida) News-Journal.

A foursome of other Masters two-timers

By Ken Willis

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Bubba Watson has won two of the past three Masters but has just two top-10s in 25 other starts in major championships. With his game seemingly built for Augusta National, he seems likely to win more Masters, but you never know.

Here's a foursome of Hall of Famers whose major championship totals topped out at two, both at the Masters.

Horton Smith (1934, '36): The "Joplin Ghost" won the inaugural event, then called the "Augusta National Invitational," and won again two years later. He was one of the top players in the PGA Tour's formative years, winning 32 times between 1928-41.

Ben Crenshaw (1984, '95): Crenshaw had a few other Masters within his grasp, as well as some other majors. In his youth, he seemed destined for more than 19 PGA Tour wins and two majors.

Bernhard Langer (1985, '93): Other than a couple of occasions at the British Open, Augusta is the only place Langer has seriously contended for major titles. Just six other top-3 major finishes, all at the British Open.

Jose Maria Olazabal (1994, '99): Longtime European Ryder Cup horse has 14 top-5s in 88 career majors, nine of them at Augusta.

Ken Willis writes for the Daytona Beach (Florida) News-Journal.