Canadian Corey Conners hanging tough at the Masters after an even-par round

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This article was published 09/04/2022 (1618 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

On a tough day when mistakes at the Masters were as common as pimento cheese, Corey Conners was pleased with his game. And now he has a chance to match a little Canadian history.

Conners shot an even-par 72 in the third round and is at 1 under for the tournament, tied for sixth.

The Listowel, Ont., native finished in the top 10 at the Masters in 2020 and 2021 and, if he manages to hold on to his position tomorrow, he’ll match Stan Leonard as the only Canadians to have three straight top-10 results at the iconic event. Leonard tied for fourth twice and for ninth once from 1958-1960.

Conners is eight shots back of the lead held by Scottie Scheffler.

“I played solid again, battled hard,” Conners said. “I gave myself some good chances (and) felt like all parts of my game were pretty solid. It was very challenging out there.”

Conners’ struggles mostly came on the greens. He had two three-putts, including on the 18th hole when he missed a par-saver from six feet. He also missed a par attempt from the same distance on No. 5 and an eight-foot birdie try on No. 13.

On the par-5 15th, a newly lengthened hole at Augusta National for 2022, Conners hit his second shot into the stands adjacent to the green. After chipping it on, his birdie try had so much speed it nearly ended up off the putting surface.

“I tried to pick my spots to be aggressive and … get myself under par. I was able to do that, hang in there most of the day. Two bogeys late derailed that a bit. Overall, still a solid day.”

Conners’ coach, Derek Ingram, said the adventure on 15 was mostly due to some poorly timed gusts of wind.

“People don’t realize outside the ropes or on TV how difficult it was out there,” Ingram said. “When you catch a gust of wind … he’s lucky it didn’t blow in the water.”

Conners managed to stay positive despite not chipping away at Scheffler’s lead. He had a good attitude to the start the day, having played on days much colder and windier in Ontario and at Kent State University.

“As you saw there were a lot of guys making a ton of mistakes and you just had to be really, really on,” said Ingram. “He was very good today, but maybe just not as clean as he would have liked on the last few holes.”

Conners converted four birdies Saturday, including on the ninth and 10th holes.

Those birdies were opportunities for Conners’ family to give him a hearty cheer. His mom, Janet, told the Star there are more than a dozen people in Conners’ cheering section this week. It is the first time Conners’ family has been able to attend the Masters since prior to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Isn’t it so incredible?” said Janet Conners, when reminded of her son’s accomplishments, including a hole-in-one a year ago. “I’m just so happy for him. I’m very proud and happy to be able to be here in person and watch.”

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Conners’ playing partner Saturday, Cam Smith, shot the round of the day. His 4-under 68 moved him to second, three off the lead. He’ll be in the final group on Sunday with Scheffler.

Conners, who will be grouped with 2016 Masters winner Danny Willett, shot a second-round 65 in 2020 and will need something similar to make up ground.

“Finishing the top 10 and winning is a little bit different,” he said, “but I love the golf course and I feel like my game’s suited to do well out here.”

Mackenzie Hughes, the other Canadian to find the weekend, struggled to a 5-over 77.

Adam Stanley is an Ottawa-based contributor to the Star’s Sports section and the host of golf podcast Next Round’s On Me. Follow him on Twitter: @adam_stanley