Augusta, GA

Viktor Hovland's Masters ends with bizarre miss from inches away

Published

2 years ago

April 13, 2024

Press Room

Viktor Hovland's Masters ends with bizarre miss from inches away

By:

Nick Piastowski

April 12, 2024

Viktor Hovland missed the Masters cut, and a late three-putt — and bizarre miss from inches away — didn’t help his cause.

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AUGUSTA, Ga. — Maybe not now, perhaps not for a while, but Viktor Hovland believes the bad stuff sometimes leads to the good.

Although it’s unclear if he’s still thinking that after he just three-putted from 5 feet — including a miss of about 3 inches — to miss the Masters cut by two shots.

“Yeah, sometimes it’s like, I would say — I don’t know if that’s normal, but I feel like that’s how I’m wired a little bit,” Hovland said earlier this week. “If I play bad, that almost motivates me more than when I’m playing good because when you’re playing good, it’s like, OK, I know what I’m doing, I can kind of take tomorrow off or I know that I’m playing good, so I’ll just chill for a little bit or whatever. You become more complacent. I would say as soon as I play bad or I make a couple of mistakes, that almost motivates me more to come back and get better.”

Now, about that three-putt.

On Friday, during the second round at Augusta National, Hovland had been struggling. It was surprising. A day earlier, he shot a one-under 71. But he succumbed to the wind and the devilishness of Augusta. He bogeyed 1. He tripled 2, via two penalties. He doubled 4. He bogeyed 5. He birdied 13, but then bogeyed 14. He was six over. He was squarely on the cut line.

Then on the 550-yard, par-5 15th, Hovland disastrously fell off. After four strokes found him 5 feet from the hole, it took him three more to get in the cup. A quick rundown:

— On the par putt, he missed to the left. It happens. His ball finished about 3 inches away. He took three steps to his right.

— On the bogey putt, Hovland just brushed the ball with just his right hand. It missed to the right. Someone in the background shouts: “Oh s**t.” Indeed.

— On the double-bogey putt, Hovland took five steps to the right. He made it, for a 7.

From there, he took six more steps and heaved his ball into the water ahead of the green. He looked down. He parred out. No weekend.

Nick Piastowski

Golf.com Editor

Nick Piastowski is a Senior Editor at Golf.com and Golf Magazine. In his role, he is responsible for editing, writing and developing stories across the golf space. And when he’s not writing about ways to hit the golf ball farther and straighter, the Milwaukee native is probably playing the game, hitting the ball left, right and short, and drinking a cold beer to wash away his score. You can reach out to him about any of these topics — his stories, his game or his beers — at nick.piastowski@golf.com.

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Augusta, GA

Augusta mayoral candidate holds town hall as election season begins

Published

11 hours ago

January 8, 2026

Press Room

Augusta mayoral candidate holds town hall as election season begins

AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) – Steven Kendrick held a town hall on Wednesday at the Henry Brigham Community Center as he prepares to challenge Augusta Mayor Garnett Johnson.

Kendrick, who serves as chief deputy tax commissioner for Richmond County, previously ran against Johnson in 2022. The town hall was part of Kendrick’s campaign tour as he seeks to unseat the incumbent mayor.

“Some of the people felt as though we really needed to dig a little deeper and we dug a little deeper,” Kendrick said after the meeting. “But that’s how you gain understanding, where everybody’s not going to agree about everything. Some of them we didn’t agree on. I certainly enjoyed the interaction. I learned some things, and I hope they learned some things as well.”

Multiple Commission seats up for election

The mayoral race is not the only contest facing Richmond County voters. Several Augusta Commission seats are up for election across multiple districts.

District 8 will have a new commissioner because Commissioner Brandon Garrett is term-limited and cannot run again. Michael Cioffi and Evett Williams have filed to run for the District 8 seat.

Districts 2, 4, 6 and 10 are also up for election. Stacy Pulliam currently serves in District 2.

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Augusta, GA

2026 is off to a deadly start, but what’s ahead for Augusta?

Published

23 hours ago

January 7, 2026

Press Room

2026 is off to a deadly start, but what’s ahead for Augusta?

AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) – Richmond County deputies are investigating their first homicide of 2026, which occurred early Monday morning on Hines Street just off Laney Walker Boulevard.

The victim was 21-year-old Thaddeus Kirkland. He was found bleeding on scene around 2 a.m. and died a short time later.

Suspect wanted for questioning

Deputies are seeking 24-year-old Bruce Wesby for questioning in connection to the incident. Wesby is known to frequent the Waynesboro area. Anyone with information about his whereabouts is asked to call the sheriff’s office.

Crime data shows progress in 2025

The first homicide of 2026 happened five days into the new year, two days sooner than the first homicide of 2025.

According to the sheriff’s office data, violent crime decreased significantly in 2025 under Sheriff Eugene Brantley’s leadership. Homicides dropped 35% year-over-year from 2024 to 2025 to their lowest level since 2021.

Aggravated assaults also dropped 35% to their lowest mark since 2018. Armed robberies fell 36% year-over-year to their lowest mark since crime data for Richmond County was first recorded in 2011.

Law enforcement focused on high-risk areas, including downtown Augusta, to lower response times and keep people safe.

“What they really want is for their families that they’re raising in this area to have safe lives, just like the citizens of Augusta that vote them in,” said M. Steven Fishman, president of Sidney’s Department Store & Uniforms. “They want to be able to go to work, come home, and enjoy their lives with their children, knowing that they’re safe.”

As 2026 gets underway, the sheriff’s office is continuing upgrades for technology and equipment to continue its goal of reducing violent crime. The office sent a statement saying the progress is in large part due to the community and deputies working together.

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Augusta, GA

Augusta organizations win $200K award for community outreach

Published

1 day ago

January 7, 2026

Press Room

Augusta organizations win 0K award for community outreach

AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) – Two Augusta organizations have been awarded $200,000 for their community outreach initiatives.

The Hub for Community Innovation Augusta and the Medical College of Georgia were named winners of the National Institutes of Health Build UP Trust Challenge, according to a post on Augusta University’s Facebook page.

The organizations were recognized for their efforts in expanding access to care and elevating community voices in research and healthcare through their Community Outreach through Athletics in Colleges and High Schools (COACHS) program.

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