Danny Willett takes out anger on Masters-winning putter at Oakmont

OAKMONT, Pa. -- Danny Willett broke the putter he used to win the Masters in anger during the third round of the U.S. Open at Oakmont and said frustration simply got the best of him.

"The putter has been bad all week,'' Willett said Sunday after shooting 71 to finish the tournament at 289, 9 over par.

Willett played the back nine first, and after three-putting the eighth green, he took out his anger on the putter by rapping it several times against the course bridge that goes across the Pennsylvania Turnpike.

"Unfortunately, it's now in two pieces,'' Willett said.

This came a hole after he thrust it into his bag so violently at the seventh hole that his caddie had to do some work to extract it.

"Obviously, the starting and stopping on Thursday, Friday, pace changed a little bit, but it's enough to kind of throw you out," Willett said. "Hit the lip a lot, and things just didn't quite go our way. One of them weeks.

"Had a couple I finished out with a wedge yesterday. Just a bad week really on the greens. They're tricky to read, tricky to keep the pace and the line the same.''

Willett plans on repairing the putter he used to win at Augusta for his first major tournament title.

"We'll have to get it refurbed, and then I won't be using it again," Willett said. "I'll end up keeping it. I don't know, I might pull it back out of retirement once.''