AUGUSTA, Ga. – For a nation that had waited 76 long years to emerge from a Pantone-shaded desert, the call was every bit as iconic as Verne Lundquist’s “Yes sir!” when Jack Nicklaus won the 1986 Masters.
Adam Scott can still hear it. “It’s now official,” Nick Faldo announced following the Australian’s winning putt at the 2013 Masters, “he’s the Wizard of Oz.”
Australia had endured endless close calls at Augusta National, from Greg Norman’s heartbreaks to Jason Day’s near-misses, before Scott finally broke through. Faldo’s call was perfectly succinct. The wait was over.
On Sunday at Augusta National, Scott was asked by a small group of reporters the last time he watched a replay of the ’13 tournament. “Before last year’s [Masters] I watched it; it gave me chills,” he admitted before heading out for his traditional practice round with his father, Phil.
Phil Scott shot 81 on Sunday, a day reserved for members and the guests of former champions. For someone who has slipped a green jacket over their shoulders, it’s the pristine quiet before the storm. Asked about the round on Thursday, Phil Scott simply beamed.
It’s what Augusta National does to people, particularly those who have savored the best of what the course has to offer, and Scott wanted to make the most of the moment. He was relaxed and confident.
Four days later, the 38-year-old’s demeanor hadn’t changed, thanks to an opening 69 that left him among the early contenders.
“I’ve talked a lot about being at peace with the golf course and understanding it can give you a lot,” Scott said on Thursday. “It can take it away as well, but certainly I feel like there’s a lot of good karma if you treat it right out there.”
If Scott comes off sounding like a spiritual guru, it’s a common theme among those who have solved a riddle that demands the game’s most unique skill set.
Some will view Scott’s five-birdie, two-bogey effort Thursday as an anomaly, an outlier amid an otherwise pedestrian season. He admits that the scorecard hasn’t been perfect in 2019. That he’s felt close but just hasn’t put everything together.
83rd Masters Tournament: Scores | @GolfCentral Masters tracker | Full coverage
“I don’t really have the results to be screaming that I’m the most confident player here, but I know where and when my game is coming into really good shape, and I can see it coming back, and I think I got some good confirmation today with some solid ball striking,” Scott said. “When I strike it really well, I think I strike it with the best of them, and I hit a lot of greens and that showed up today.”
Scott would never be considered a boastful player. If anything, quietly reserved would be a better description of the father of two with the graying beard. But when he’s hitting the ball well like he did on Day 1, he has no interest in false modesty.
On Thursday, he ranked fifth in driving distance and ninth in greens in regulation. Although he will never be mistaken for one of the game’s great putters, he performed well enough to score, much like he did in 2013.
He rolled in a 20-footer for birdie from the fringe at No. 8, a 16-footer for birdie at No. 9 and closed his day with back-to-back birdies at Nos. 17 and 18, both from outside 10 feet.
“At 17 and 18, I hit great drives and had good numbers and took advantage,” he said. “That’s kind of what you have to do, get some momentum going ... I feel like teeing off from this position tomorrow afternoon is a hell of a lot better than even par.”
For a player more than three years removed from his last victory on the PGA Tour, his quick start is encouraging. Scott went so far as to call it “validation” for all the work he’s been putting in. It was also a chance to break a disturbing mold.
Scott’s 69 was just the second time he’s broken par in the opening round of his last nine major starts, a trend that’s regularly put him in the unenviable position of playing catchup on the game’s toughest venues.
“Generally, in my career I’m kind of a slow starter. Certainly the last 10 years, I don’t jump out of the gates it seems,” he said. “I don’t know if this is jumping out of the gates, but it certainly is great.”
Thursday’s are no time to become nostalgic, even at the Masters, and at this point in his career, that ’13 victory at Augusta National is more of a fond memory than a daily affirmation. But even through 18 holes, the similarities are impossible to ignore.
Six years ago, he also opened with a 3-under 69 in a round that similarly concluded with a birdie at the 18th hole. Sunday’s forecast also holds a familiar theme with rain expected, much like the steady drizzle that served as the surreal backdrop in 2013.
Scott no longer wields the broom-handle putter he won his first major with - golf’s rule makers long ago deciding that anchoring was verboten - and he doesn’t enjoy the same consistency he once did; but everything else – the swing, the confidence, the focus – seemed so familiar.
The “Wizard of Oz” was at it again.