After hot start, Scott’s putter cooled at Northern Trust Open

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Adam Scott came out of the gate on Sunday at the Northern Trust Open with a hot putter.

No, a really hot putter.

Scott made more than 100 feet of putts in the first six holes at Riviera, playing the first third of his round in 5 under par. He looked ready to pick up his first PGA Tour win since he retook No. 1 in the world at Colonial in 2014.

Then on the eighth hole, Scott struggled to reach the green in four shots, missing a 5-foot putt for bogey. The double bogey stunted but didn’t kill Scott’s momentum. What did Scott in was a pair of misses from inside 5 feet on the 14th and 15th holes, leading to bogeys.

Scott did his best to rally, making a birdie on the par-5 17th before chipping in for a closing birdie from back of the green at No. 18. However, the Aussie came up one shot short of Bubba Watson, who won the PGA Tour’s Los Angeles-area event for the second time in three years.

Ahead of the ban on the anchored stroke which took effect on Jan. 1, Scott ditched the broomstick putter and went to a counterbalanced model in the hopes of somewhat replicating the successes he had with the long wand. Then again, Scott never found complete confidence with the anchored stroke. He’s had reason to feel encouraged since making the switch, with now a second runner-up finish in four official PGA Tour starts this season.

Perhaps the best sign of all? While the putter was friend and foe on Sunday, Scott’s performance moved him up from 195th on the PGA Tour in strokes gained putting to 74th.

Ryan Ballengee is a Yahoo Sports contributor. Find him on Facebook and Twitter.

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