What they said at the Masters - First Round
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Much of the talk on the first day surrounded China's Tianlang Guan.
The 14-year-old became the youngest player to ever compete at the Masters. For his part, Guan seemed to fit right in.
"I was just a little bit nervous on the first tee, after a great tee shot ... I started to feel comfortable. I just want to enjoy tomorrow and hit some good shots," Guan said afterwards.
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The youngster makes it sound so easy doesn't he?
Here's what other players were saying after the first round of the 77th Masters:
- BEN CRENSHAW, the 1984 and 1995 Masters champion, played alongside Guan and had this to say about the youngster; "He played about four of the most delicate pitches I've ever seen. He played like a 28-year-old journeyman and stayed well within himself. His thought process was never rushed, and he was very patient. It certainly didn't seem like he had any nerves."
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- DUSTIN JOHNSON, has made the cut in each of his previous three appearances at the Masters, but has failed to crack the top 30. He does have five top-10 finishes at the other three majors, and he talked about how he managed to score on Thursday; "I hit a couple bad tee shots, but I was able to get something up around the greens and get it up and down. Around here, just leaving it on the right side of the hole is key. I putted pretty well. I didn't have any 3-putts, which if you can go around here without any 3-putts, you're doing pretty good."
- FRED COUPLES, the 1992 Masters champion, was spurred on by his ability to keep tee shots near his two big-hitting playing partners; "I just love this place. You have to drive the ball pretty long. And it be honest with you, I was swinging pretty hard today. I was close to a couple of Dustin Johnson's 3- woods and Brendan Grace's drivers, and that gets me pumped up. I love the course, and if I drive it like that, I can play it any day."
- RORY MCILROY, the reigning PGA Champion, can reclaim the top spot in the world rankings this week with a win and Tiger Woods finishing outside the top two, and he talked about his struggle to keep his round going on Thursday; "I played the front nine really well. I turned in a couple under, but it seemed every time I got a bit of momentum I gave it straight back. I couldn't get any momentum going."
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- PHIL MICKELSON, the three-time Masters champion, was very philosophical about his round and wants to get more aggressive going forward; "I knew on Tuesday that this was how it was going to play out having not played competitively in a little while. I'm tentative and I'm a little bit passive. I tried to be very careful not to make a huge, dumb mistake early on. After being 2-over through seven holes, I found my groove. I can't wait to get back out on the course tomorrow because I feel like I can light it up."
- TREVOR IMMELMAN, the 2008 Masters champion, has had just one top-5 and four top-10 finishes since claiming his lone major championship five years ago. He has battled a variety of injuries since, and he talked about how good this round was, "Any time you play well it's satisfying. I obviously feel comfortable here and I've made a lot of friends over the years, so it kind of feels like coming home in a way. It's nice to get a good round under my belt early."