Masters 2024: Ryan Fox weathers back nine storm to stay in contention and make cut

Augusta National is a tough enough course as it is, factor in testing wind conditions plus the fact you are playing against the most elite field in golf and you have a recipe for a troublesome round.

Those sentiments were echoed by New Zealand’s top men’s golfer, Ryan Fox, as he reflected on what can only be described as a battling effort in his second round at the 2024 US Masters as he shot a two-over 74 to sit tied for eighth.

Heading into day two at three-under and within four shots of leaders Bryson Dechambeau and Scottie Scheffler, Fox had to wait until the par-five eighth hole to make his first birdie of the day – that ended up being his solitary scoring hole of the round. The world No 54 said he hadn’t had many tougher days in his career.

“That’s got to be one of the hardest days I’ve had on a golf course, it was so hard to pick what it was going to do – whether it was helping or hurting.

“We had some huge gusts out there and there’s some really intimidating shots.”

On the back nine in particular, Augusta’s greens are fraught with difficulty as unique, rolling green complexes and water hazards make for troublesome tee shots and tricky approaches. Once on the green, it doesn’t get much easier.

“You’re so worried about potenially spinning it back in the water and then also you hit it long and it’s downwind and you can chip it the next one in the water – it’s pretty intimidating,” said Fox.

Ryan Fox of New Zealand walks on the 18th green. Photo / Getty Images

Despite a back nine holes that featured three bogeys, Fox said he was pleased with how he played and considered his two-over-par 74 to be a fair score, considering the conditions.

“Tee to green I played great, I just really struggled on the greens today. Just couldn’t get the lines right with the wind, had a couple of bad putts as well. With how hard it was today I don’t think 74 was a bad score.”

Fox has struggled for form this year since securing his PGA Tour card but said he felt like he was back into something of a groove as he made the cut and will head into the weekend’s play.

“Coming down I wasn’t worried about the cut, but obviously if I’d made a number down say the last four holes it would have got slightly more interesting – I was really happy with how I played 15 through 18.

“It’s been a pretty rough ride lately and I tried to enjoy it as much as I could out there and hit some good shots and felt like most parts of the game were starting to work again.”

American trio Max Homa, Scottie Scheffler and Bryson Dechambeau hold the clubhouse lead at six-under, a strong third round from Fox could see him better the T26 finish he achieved on his Masters debut last year.