Triple-birdie Bubba casts Masters woe aside

Bubba Watson battled bravely with a two-under par 70 to lie within striking distance of the lead at the Shenzhen International. He definitely shrugged off the disappointment of relinquishing his Masters crown earlier this week.

The American admitted he struggled early in his opening round at the European Tour event after a rapid trip halfway across the world from Augusta, where he had finished one over par and 19 shots adrift of champion Jordan Spieth on Sunday.

However, he fought back superbly on the closing stretch after his day had threatened to fall apart after back-to-back bogeys dropped him to one over par after 11 holes.

“It was a slow start, you know, getting used to the greens – the speed of them,” said Watson at the southern Chinese city’s Genzon Golf Club.

“Coming from the Masters to here is a little different. It’s not really about confidence, it’s about feeling the greens out. I three-putted one hole and some of my chips didn’t turn out the way I wanted them to. But made three (birdies) in a row there to help me to two-under so it’s nice.”

“The whole course sets up good for me and hit my driver quite nicely today off the tee. It set up some holes, so hopefully tomorrow I’ll make a few more putts. I wouldn’t be here if I wasn’t motivated to win.” said Bubba.