Sergio Garcia puts five balls in water at Augusta's par-five 15th
Friday 6 April 2018 13:36, UK
Sergio Garcia saw his Masters title challenge unravel in record-breaking fashion after firing five balls into the water on one of Augusta's most iconic holes.
The Spaniard eagled the par-five 15th during last year's final-round tussle with Justin Rose on his way to a maiden major success, but got into all kinds of bother when tackling the hole during Thursday's opening round.
After finding the middle of the fairway off the tee, Garcia elected to attack the green in two but saw his effort end up in the water hazard.
Garcia returned to the drop zone and saw his next attempt suffer a similar fate, before his next effort - his sixth shot - found the green but rolled back down the slope and into the hazard.
The Spaniard's next two attempts to clear the hazard also ended in disappointment and resulted in further penalty shots, with Garcia finally finding dry land at the sixth time of asking - his 12th shot.
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With his ball stopping 10 feet from the pin, Garcia rolled in the putt to card an eight-over 13, the worst score ever recorded on that hole in the tournament's history.
"It's one of those things," said Garcia after completing a nine-over round of 81. "It's the first time in my career where I make a 13 without missing a shot. Simple as that.
"I felt like I hit a lot of good shots and unfortunately the ball just didn't want to stop. It's just unfortunate, but that's what it is.
"I had 206 [yards]. I had six‑iron. I thought it was perfect. Straight at the flag. I don't know, if it carries probably two more feet, it's probably good. And if it probably carries a foot less, it probably doesn't go off the green, but unfortunately I flew it on the perfect spot for it to come back.
"And then I kept hitting good shots with the sand wedge and unfortunately I don't know why, the ball just wouldn't stop."
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