Augusta Diary

A round-up of today's news from Augusta

Irish emissaries come in all sorts of guises

RORY McILROY was not the only Irish rookie at Augusta National. Michael McCumiskey, the long-time and hard-working general secretary of the Irish PGA, attended his first Masters, while PJ Collins, the president of the GUI, represented the oldest national governing body in the sport.

Another interested observer over the four rounds was Westlife’s Shane Filan, who divided his time between watching the Irish trio of players and his friend Lee Westwood.

Filan, who struck up a friendship with Westwood in a pro-am, was a guest of the Englishman in one of the ISM houses. Looking for all the world like a golfer, complete with Masters visor, Filan – a 14-handicapper at Strandhill Golf Club in his native Sligo – left Augusta with the intention of working on his game.

“I’d love to get down to 10,” said Filan.

Where he will find the time is anyone’s guess, as the band are working on their latest album.

Fisher hits the right number

NORMALLY not the superstitious type, Ross Fisher – attached to the Dublin-based Horizon Sports – couldn’t help but notice he finished his debut Masters with a score to match the registration number on his caddie’s bib: a 69.

“It just shows, turning up at the right time and getting that bib number was nice,” said Fisher, who finished on 287. “It’s a shame about the two middle rounds. I’ve had highs and lows but I will come back here with a shed load of confidence. I think it is a course that really suits my game and I can really contend round here in future years.”

Casey happy it’s over this time

WHAT A difference a week makes. Seven days on from his maiden triumph on the US Tour, England’s Paul Casey, who closed with a 69 for 286, two-under – couldn’t wait to put his feet up on the sofa and sip a cold beer.

“Maybe, with last week, a little fatigue affected my game,” conceded Casey.

“I felt I was hitting the ball very well and doing everything right but not getting it going. I don’t like going out early, as I did over the weekend. It’s a championship I want to be involved in at the pointy end.

“This is a golf course where you learn something every time you come. It’s very difficult to read the greens. On that front, I’ve taken another step closer to hopefully figuring it out.”

By the numbers

11– The picturesque 11th hole – known as White Dogwood, again proved it packs quite a bite. Over the weekend, it proved to be the toughest ranked hole, with an average score of 4.5 on the par four.

365– The original Fruitland Nurseries, which was purchased by Bobby Jones to create Augusta National, comprised 365 acres. When Jones first laid eyes on the land, he remarked: "And to think this ground has been waiting here all these years waiting for someone to come along and build a golf course on it."

7– The number of honorary starters used in the Masters since their introduction in 1963. Arnold Palmer again fulfilled the duty for this latest edition of the tournament, a role he has undertaken since 2007. Jock Hutchison (1963-'73), Fred McLeod (1963-'76), Byron Nelson (1981-2001), Gene Sarazen (1981-'99), Ken Venturi (1983), Sam Snead (1984-2002) and Palmer (2007-'09) are the players to have been honoured with the position.

49– Players survived into the weekend, with Argentina's Andres Romero and American Rocco Mediate bringing up the rear on 298, 10-over-par.