Toshi Izawa picked the right time to play well.

Tied for 16th entering the final round, the 33-year-old Japanese golfer fired a 67 on Sunday and finished in a tie for fourth at 10-under-par. He ended the Masters six shots behind Tiger Woods .

``I wished to be in the top-16 to be invited back,'' he said.

Izawa earned $246,400 for his finish and has now earned enough money to gain conditional status on the PGA Tour if he joins within the next 30 days. However, he plans to return to Japan and play as many tournaments as he can.

``All of Japan is watching TV. It is 5, 6 a.m; watching TV for hours. They will be sleeping on Monday and blame it on the Masters Tournament,'' he said.

DIMARCO DETERMINED: Thirty-six hole leader Chris DiMarco nearly played himself out of an invitation to the 2002 Masters on Sunday. The former Florida Gator made bogeys on Nos. 13 and 14 and would have finished outside of the top-16 if he had parred out.

However, DiMarco refused to quit. He birdied the par-3 16th and drained an 18-foot birdie putt on the 72nd hole for a 74 and an 8-under-par tournament total. The first-time Masters competitor tied for 10th with four other golfers and will be back next year.

``I learned a lot this week,'' he said. ``I learned to slow down and be patient. It was a lot of fun. I can't wait to get back here next year.''

PUTTER PROBLEMS: Tom Lehman said he could have played better if he didn't have trouble with his putter this week. He shot a final-round 68 en route to a 6-under-par tournament total.

Lehman used 127 putts in four rounds, averaging 1.764 putts per hole. Only Mark Brooks (128) had more putts.

``I put myself in the right position so often and I have nothing to show for it,'' Lehman said. ``I've been practicing my putting a lot this week. It just seems like there's a lid on (the hole). You try harder and harder and the hole gets smaller and smaller. I couldn't just find a way to relax and just roll it.''

PERMANENT MARKER: For the second straight day, noncompeting marker John Harris played 18 holes at Augusta National. After playing with Bob May on Saturday, Harris teed it up with Steve Lowery on Sunday. Lowery said Harris had a round close to par with birdies on Nos. 17 and 18.

``He's a really nice guy,'' Lowery said. ``He never needed to pick the ball up. He never made worse than a bogey. He played pretty darn good.''

Lowery didn't play badly, either. He had his best round of the tournament with a 70. He gave Harris some credit for his good play.

``I was glad I didn't have to play by myself,'' Lowery said. ``I'd much rather play with somebody like that. When you play by yourself you just play too fast.''

HAPPY CAMPER: Kirk Triplett fell out of contention early in his round with bogeys on Nos. 4 and 6. Triplett, though, rebounded with birdies on the next three holes, including a 50-footer on the par-4 ninth that curled into the hole.

After missing the cut in two previous Masters appearances, Triplett shot a final-round 71 for a 9-under-par total, which earns him a trip back to Augusta next year.

``I'm thrilled with my finish,'' he said. ``I had a tough start. But I hung in there and fought back.''

CONSISTENT: Stuart Appleby played 50 consecutive holes at par or better, breaking Ben Hogan's record of 43 holes set in 1947. Appleby shot a 76 in the final-round and ended the tournament at even-par.

``You're not going to win the Masters making pars,'' he said. ``I played pretty good. I just didn't get the results out of my game.''

TOO SHORT: Fred Couples conceded after his round Sunday that something needed to be done about how golf balls are made. Couples shot 4-under for the day and 4-under for the tournament.

``I think the ball is a huge deal,'' he said. ``Every day, I hit a sand wedge to 18. It is too short for a finishing hole nowadays. I used to hit 7- or 8-iron here.''

CADDIE CHANGE: Miguel Angel Jimenez had his brother caddie for him this week, and it worked out well. On the strength of an eagle on No. 13, Jimenez shot a 69 on Sunday and tied for 10th at 8-under-par.

With his strong showing, Jimenez qualified for next year's Masters. However, his brother Juan probably won't be making the trip to Augusta.

``I was so happy and I didn't feel so alone. I needed him this week, but I will be looking for another caddie for the future,'' Jimenez said.

SLOW RIDE: Ernie Els never got things going as he bogeyed No. 5 and shot a 37 on the front nine. He eventually got to 10-under for the tournament but made a bogey on No. 17 en route to a final-round 72.

SEE SAW: Mark Calcavecchia went back and forth on his way to 72. Calcavecchia made a birdie on No. 1, then bogeyed Nos. 4 and 5 before birdieing Nos. 7 and 8 to get to 11-under.

He fell out of contention when he got wet on No. 13 and bogeyed and three-putted for bogey on No. 14.

FURYK'S FUMBLE: Starting the day at 6-under par, Jim Furyk got to 11-under par on his round after making a 3-foot birdie putt on No. 15. But for the second straight day he bogeyed Nos. 16 and 17, this time lipping out two par putts. He finished with a 69.

``I got off to a great start,'' he said. ``I figured I needed another 4-under on the back. But unfortunately, I didn't do it.''

WELCOME BACK: Two-time Masters champion Bernhard Langer had his best Masters since winning in 1993. Langer birdied four of the final six holes for a 69 and a 9-under total, which tied him for sixth place.

``Overall, I'm very pleased. This shows I can still compete with the best in the game,'' he said.