Aiken’s Kevin Kisner hoping for better Masters weather

Forgive Kevin Kisner if he’s turned into a part-time weatherman.

With all the rain that Augusta has experienced leading into April, he’s concerned because he prefers Augusta National when it’s playing fast and firm.

“I’m hoping that it quits raining, is what I’m hoping,” Kisner said about a month before the Masters. “We’ve had an immense amount of rain at home and the golf course is wet and long. Just hope we get some dry weather and grinding on what I always do.”

Kisner lives in nearby Aiken, so he knows better than most what conditions have been like around Augusta. He was scheduled to play a practice round at Augusta National before he embarked on the Florida Swing but it was rained out.

Kisner has never missed a cut at the Masters since his debut in 2016, but he hasn’t contended either.

He took some baby steps last year with his first sub-70 score, a 69 in the third round. He wound up tied for 28th at even par for the four rounds.

Kisner, 35, isn’t a short hitter, but he’s also not among the bomb and gouge crowd. If he can’t get extra roll on a firm fairway, he winds up hitting more club into the greens.

“It’s hard for me to make a ton of birdies when I’m hitting 4- or 5-iron and other guys are hitting 7 or 8,” he said. “When we get to where it’s chasing down the fairways I can get there.”

Kisner has already proved he can contend in majors. He held the 54-hole lead at the PGA in 2017, and was in contention last year at Carnoustie all four days at the British Open.

He shared the lead going into the final round and eventually tied for second, his best finish in a major.

At the PGA, he opened with 67 and 64 but couldn’t maintain that pace on the weekend. The silver lining is that Kisner is getting more comfortable in the biggest events.

“Well, I think it kind of goes hand in hand with your schedule. When I first started getting into majors you didn’t know if you were in or not,” he said. “Now you’re in them all and you can start the year and your practice and preparation for that. You always hear the bigger names talk about that and you can start trending your game and trying to hit certain shots for these types of golf courses.”

His early season didn’t produce the results Kisner desires. He has missed only one cut, but his best finish was a tie for seventh at Sea Island. At Bay Hill in early March, he got into contention through three rounds but faded with a 75 in the final round.

He also jumped to the top of the leaderboard early in the second round at the Players Championship, but tied for 22nd after playing the final 36 holes in even par.

Kisner planned to stay busy with four consecutive events before taking off the week before the Masters.

“This is probably my biggest stretch of the year right here,” he said. “Kind of just places I like to play and obviously getting ready for Augusta. I’m trying to ramp up my game and get in shape.”