After faltering in '09, Perry thinks about more than golf

Two years ago, Kenny Perry was one par away from the lifetime invitation that goes with winning the Masters Tournament. Now, he's not even in the field.

"I had my shot and I blew it," Perry said at the Honda Classic in early March.

With a two-shot lead with two holes to go in 2009, Perry had one arm in a green jacket. All he needed to do was par one hole and make no worse than bogey on the other.

But he bogeyed both and then lost in a three-man sudden-death playoff to Angel Cabrera.

The other member of that playoff was Chad Campbell. He's not playing in the Masters this year, either.

The difference between Campbell and Perry is their age. At 36, Campbell will likely qualify for the Masters again. Perry, who is 50, probably won't.

"I knew it was going to happen, and I don't think it's unfair," Perry said "I'm 50 years old; let's be realistic."

Perry's play fell off in 2010 when he had one top-10 finish in 20 starts. In contrast, he won twice and had eight top-10s in 24 starts in 2009.

Perry, who has 14 career PGA Tour wins, could still get back to the Masters by winning on the PGA Tour before the 2012 Masters.

When interviewed in mid-March, Perry had three tournaments in which a win would get him to Augusta. He missed the cut in the Transitions (74-75), withdrew from the Arnold Palmer Invitational with an injury after a first-round 79 and didn't play in Houston last week, as he had hoped.

"I'm just playing golf," Perry said. "I don't have the aspirations and drive I had. I did all I could do. I'm very happy with what I did. I'm just enjoying the last couple of years and move on."

This year's Senior PGA Championship, which he will play in, is at Valhalla, the site of Perry's 1996 collapse in the PGA Championship. That year, he had a one-shot lead going to the 72nd hole, made bogey and lost a playoff to Mark Brooks.

"Nobody even remembers it," Perry said. "The Masters is still pretty fresh in their mind."

What happened in 2009 is ancient history to Perry now.

"When you think about it, you can be depressed or you can forget about it and move on," he said. "And I'm trying to move on. I just had a grandson recently; the heck with golf."

Reach David Westin at (706) 823-3224 ordavid.westin@augustachronicle.com.