Woods triumph marks remarkable return
It was Jack Nicklaus who claimed, with some insight, that at Major Championships he only had half the field to beat his reasoning being that only half of those against whom he was competing believed they could win. Jack never locked horns with Tiger Woods but had he done so the man from Cypress California would have been in that small coterie of individuals who possessed the same sense of self belief as he.
As the season’s opening Major Championship the US Masters sets the template for drama. But as the threat of heavy storms forced an early start to the final day’s play, little did we know that Sunday April 14th 2019 would not only provide the usual high degree of drama but also a special place in golfing history.
For this was also the day that the eleven year major championship drought endured by one Eldrick Tont Woods finally came to an end. Injuries to knee and back, the latter requiring multiple operations and the sordid tales surrounding the break-up of his marriage had stripped him bare both physically and mentally. Nobody ever really thought he would compete at the highest level again let alone win a major championship. Yet remarkably once again he has done so. By winning his fifth green jack and 15th major triumph he has literally achieved the unbelievable.
Reflecting on his triumph in the Butler Cabin he made two telling statements - one about his play, the other about his state of mind. First he said that he’d plodded his way around the course, playing within himself and keeping everything under control. Unlike those around him he made very few errors and once into the heat of the back nine made telling birdies at 13, 15 and 16 the latter following a brilliant tee shot which he nearly holed. That run of holes put him into the lead and so assured was his game that at that point one sensed that Tiger Woods was on his way to victory. And second he commented on the fluctuating leader board on which were the names of the current cream of the game. With that famous broad smile he said “I enjoyed it”. You’re at the Masters. You’ve not won a green jacket in fourteen years and you are feeding off the experience rather than being cowed by it. Little wonder that he is one of the greats if not the great of the game.
©Mark Brennand