AUGUSTA, Ga. — Ricky Barnes and Matt Kuchar have two things in common. They both are past U.S. Amateur champions, and both enjoyed early success at the Masters only to learn how difficult getting into the tournament as a pro can be.
Yesterday, their paths met on the leaderboard after the first round of the 75th Masters. Each fired a 4-under par 68 to stand three shots behind leaders Rory McIlroy of Northern Island and Alvaro Quiros of Spain.
Success in the first round of the Masters is nothing new to Barnes, who won the 2002 U.S. Amateur at Oakland Hills and went to the Masters the next spring and a fired an opening-round 69 to stand in second place after 18 holes.
He would finish in 21st place overall as an amateur, but didn’t qualify as a pro Masters until last year.
Kuchar, who won the 1997 U.S. Amateur, played in three Masters during a five-year stretch and missed seven straight years before qualifying for last year’s event. Now both are seasoned veterans, looking to add a major championship to their resumes.
“It’s not an easy tournament to get into,” Barnes said. “It’s self-explanatory. You have to either win or be top 50 in the world, and those are not easy accolades. I’m back, and I would love to be back each and every year from here until eternity.”
Kuchar, who led the money list last year, made six birdies against just two bogeys on the day, climbing as low as 5-under until a bogey at the par-3 16th.
“I felt solid out there,” he said. “I didn’t feel like I was doing a whole lot of grinding. I didn’t feel like I was really ever in trouble of it sliding away. It was just a pretty solid round of golf.”
The same can be said for Barnes, who used birdies at the par-5 eighth and par-4 ninth to jump start his round. He played bogey-free on the back, collecting birdies at the par-5 13th and par-5 15th.
“If you are going to play well out here, you are not going to live and die by playing the par 3s and par 4s well out here,” Barnes said. “You have to cash in on some par 5s. You probably have to get at least two or three of them a day and then take advantage when you hit good drives on a hole and you get those wedges and 9-irons in your hand.”
In addition to being on the leader board, Barnes flashed back to 2003 earlier this week when he saw Alejandro “Alex” Larrazabal, the caddie for Jose Maria Olazabal.
Larrazabal was the British Amateur champion and also played in the ’03 Masters.
“I had not seen him since then, so it’s about nine years later,” Barnes said. “We spent a lot of time together when I was here in 2003. Nothing but smile and good memories.”
Barnes and Kuchar hope to make more Masters memories this weekend.
george.willis.@nypost.com
