Weather a little cooler for Tuesday's Masters practice round

After Monday’s nearly record temperatures, the Masters Tourna­ment got a bit of a cool-down during Tuesday’s practice rounds.

Temperatures reached a high of 81 Tuesday after Monday’s 89. The thermometer read 66 when patrons made their way through the gates at the 8 a.m. starting time after an overnight shower.

Forecasts had called for rain in the afternoon but that never materialized.

“We got lucky this morning,” said Patti Wentworth of Austin, Texas. “It was cloudy but no rain, the sun stayed away and we could stand anywhere.”

Wentworth came out early because she had heard it would rain and did not want to run into the same issue they had last year.

Monday night last year, a storm with winds reaching 50 miles per hour left about a half-inch of rain on Augusta National Golf Club. The result was a large cleanup effort to dry soggy greens and clean up debris. The winds continued into most of Tuesday putting a damper on the second practice day.

This year, there was a little rain overnight, but the greens stayed dry enough, golfers said.

Peter Hanson, who is competing in his second Masters, said the weather was not a hindrance.

“Once the sun came out, it was quite hot,” he said. “It was similar to yesterday.”

Padraig Harrington agreed.

“It was lovely – perfect,” he said. “Nice and warm.”

The National Weather Service forecasts cooler temperatures after Wednesday. The high Wednesday is expected to be 85. Thursday’s high is 78, Friday 68, Saturday 72 and Sunday 76.

Hanson said the cooler weather won’t significantly affect play.

“When it gets cooler, the ball travels a bit shorter,” he said. “But we’re getting used to it.”