Patrick Reed: ‘Lost My Opportunity’ to Win Masters Because of Putting Woes

Could Patrick Reed have won the Masters? He believes it was in the realm of possibility, if not for his performance on the greens.

Patrick Reed feels he could have won the Masters if not for his balky putter. / Grace Smith-Imagn Images

Could Patrick Reed have won the Masters instead of Rory McIlroy?

Reed believes it was in the realm of possibility, if not for his performance on the greens. 

“The putter,” Reed said after his final-round 69 that notched him a solo-third finish. “The putter killed me. Killed me this week. Really lost my opportunity to win a green jacket because of the putter.”

The 2018 Masters champion, who has played for LIV Golf since 2022, finished at nine over, two strokes out of the Justin Rose-McIlroy playoff. 

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Part of the reason he finished close to the top of the leaderboard is because of his fireworks on the par-4 17th, in which he didn’t need his flatstick, because he holed out from 146 yards. Afterward, Reed was befuddled about where the ball went, not thinking it one-hopped into the cup. 

“You hit it close enough, you don’t need to putt,” the 34-year-old said. “I hit a great drive. 17 and 18 have always kind of been an Achilles heel of mine, and I hit a great drive there on 17 and I was in between—Kess [Kessler Karain, Reed’s caddie] wanted me to hit a little softer pitching wedge, like 80%. I was like, ‘Nah, I got to hit 90% because I have to make sure it covers that bunker on the right.’ I hit 90% right after it, and then all of a sudden we can't really see it because it’s kind of shiny and everything up there.

“I was flag hunting, and they said it one or two-hopped in. It was either going in or it was going to be really close. To make that was really cool because you sit there and go, ‘Hey, mathematically I might have a chance.’”

2018 Masters champion Patrick Reed holes out for eagle on No. 17. #themasters pic.twitter.com/N9t8P7KYtv

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His hopes for victory were mostly dashed on the par-5 13th. He missed a 4-footer for birdie and then failed to convert the short comebacker en route to a bogey. 

“I would have been in a playoff if I made that,” Reed said. “So that’s one of those things, you make it, it probably gives you that momentum going into 14 and probably hit a little better iron shot than I did, might have an opportunity to go there on 15.”

He had a chance for birdie on his 72nd hole, too. He stuck his approach to 11 feet, but once again, his putter failed him. Ultimately, it wouldn’t have mattered anyway. 

“The first thing Kess said when we were on the last. I looked at the leaderboard, saw that, all right, I can give this putt a really good run at it, try to make birdie there,” Reed said. 

But if he dropped a few more putts on the first 71 holes, Reed might not be thinking ‘what if?’

“It was one of those things that the putter cost me this week,” he said, “but the good thing is, hey, ball striking is there, and even when I’m not really feeling like I have it all that I need this week, I still had a chance.”