Course tame during first practice round day at Augusta

Greens not yet at "tournament speed"

A sunny day, warm day at Augusta National Golf Club with its usual breeze coming out of the southwest has kept the course fairly tame, Charles Howell III said after a practice round this afternoon.

"If it stayed like this today, it'd be fantastic," he said.

But the Augusta native with seven Masters Tournaments under his belt knows that's just wishful thinking. He said he expects to see the course present more difficult challenges as the week progresses.

"The greens aren't quite tournament speed yet, and that's to be expected," he said. "It's in very good shape. We played (last) Monday and Tuesday, and I think it might have been a touch faster then, but they'll speed up."

Howell will compete in his eighth Masters and first since 2008.