It was a grind at Augusta National today with the wind wreaking havoc on the players as Adam Scott could testify after his round.

The former Masters champion ground his way to a 3-over 75 which featured six bogeys and three birdies.

“It’s not exactly what I wanted.  I bogeyed three of my last four holes.  I did a lot of good stuff out there considering conditions are really tough,” said Scott.

“But two three‑putts to finish kind of sour’s the day’s work.”

It was his putting that let Scott down, but it was always going to be a struggle in the unusual Augusta conditions.

“It could have been worse for me today.  I would have liked to have putt better from six to ten feet, but it’s very difficult when the wind is blowing really hard and you don’t have complete control over the golf ball,” added Scott.

“My putt on the last ‑‑ I’m putting from 45 feet up the hill straight downwind. And once it was on top it was just rolling like it was flying.  It’s very hard.

“You’ve got to hit it hard enough to get up the hill but then very hard to judge how to hit it.  And putts lose speed and break a lot here, and you add a gust of 30 miles an hour into it, you’re really not controlling the ball.

“I had a ball that was three feet from the hole.  I’d marked it, put it back, and it rolled to 12 feet.  So it’s very difficult conditions and borderline today.”

However Scott is optimistic heading into the second round.

“If it’s going to be windy again, I don’t think we’re going to have any super low scores out there,” added Scott.

“So if I can go a couple back towards par with a really good round with just even par or better tomorrow, should keep me hopefully in touch with the lead for the weekend where it looks like it may be a little calmer weather.”