Here’s why Si Woo Kim, in contention at the Masters, putted with his 3-wood

Julie Williams
·1 min read

Much transpired at Augusta National’s 15th hole for Si Woo Kim on Friday afternoon. By that point, Kim, a 25-year-old from South Korea, was tied for fifth and in contention at the Masters.

But that’s also where Kim had to trade out his putter on the greens for his 3-wood. When Kim slammed the flatstick head-first into the ground in anger next to the 15th green, it broke. That meant he could no longer use the putter to finish his round, and out came the 3-wood.

Remarkably, Kim made par at the par-5 15th. He threw his golf ball in the water anyway.

At No. 16, he nearly made a left-to-right breaker for birdie with the metalwood. He walked away with par there instead.

Kim’s choice of replacement “putter” sparked the question: What club is most useful in the event that a player breaks his putter mid-round?

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