One putt, one four-foot putt, and Chad Campbell would join Angel Cabrera and Kenny Perry for the second hole of sudden death Sunday at the Masters Tournament.

Chad Campbell hits from the bunker on No. 18 during the first playoff hole against Angel Cabrera and Kenny Perry. His putt strayed to the right of the cup. (Rainier Ehrhardt/Staff)

The slow-talking Texan, however, admitted to a fundamental lapse in his stroke, and when the ball strayed to the right of the cup at the 18th hole of Augusta National Golf Club, he had to watch Cabrera and Perry stroll to the 10th tee to continue the playoff.

He was left behind, because he didn't commit fully to his left-edge read.

Cabrera would eventually win, with Campbell getting a tie for second place.

"I hit a good drive, a great bunker shot and a bad putt," said Campbell, whose 69 was the best final-round score of the three playoff competitors who finished regulation at 12-under-par 276. "I just pushed the putt. It was a left-edge putt and I just kind of left the blade open."

It was one last tough break on a grueling day for Campbell, who started his week with a record five consecutive birdies in the first round to take the early lead, had a share of the 36-hole lead, and started the final round two shots off the pace at 9-under.

Campbell worked his way into a share of the lead Sunday with Perry at 11-under with a chip-in birdie at No. 3 and a 10-foot birdie putt at No. 8. Campbell bogeyed Nos. 9 and 11 to fall out of the lead again, but clawed back with a 10-foot birdie putt at No. 12, followed by birdies at both par-5 holes on the back nine to get to 12-under.

Campbell appeared to be out of it again after he missed a 6-foot birdie putt at No. 16 and failed to birdie either 17 or 18. He watched from the scoring hut while Perry bogeyed his final two holes, however, and had new life as part of the first three-man playoff in the Masters since 1987.

Campbell hit the fairway on the first hole of sudden death, but pushed his second shot into the right bunker.

"I thought the bunker shot was very makeable," he said. "I had seen, in 2006, Tim Clark had made the same bunker shot, and for some reason, I was thinking about that. All you have to do is dump it out and chase it right down there. Unfortunately, I missed the putt."

Campbell has been close to winning majors before. He had the 36-hole lead in the 2006 Masters and was in the final group of the 2003 PGA Championship before losing to Shaun Micheel on the final hole, when Micheel hit an approach shot to within two feet.

Each experience, he believes, will benefit him in the long run.

"I will take a lot of positives away from it," he said. "I played well all week and definitely feel good about it."