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Let's Talk About The Masters

By Quin Hillyer on 4.6.09 @ 11:11AM

It's high time we stop talking about sidelights like a weaponized North Korea or the economic fascism of Barack Obama, and instead talk about something REALLY important: The Masters.

There should be plenty to say about it as the week goes on, including how nice it would be to see something unexpected, like a sentimental favorite (Greg Norman? Fred Couples?) take home the Green Jacket.

But I fear we've all read the script already, and know exactly what's going to happen. If Tiger Woods does NOT win this week, I'll have to scrape my jaw off the floor and reattach it to my face.

It sounds churlish to say that I "fear" that's what will happen. Tiger's performance at the US Open last year was one of such surpassing heart and determination that he deserves to be rooted for. But his wins are just too expected. Just once, just one friggin time, it would be nice to see somebody pull a Trevino or Watson on him and chip in, or make any sort of birdie, on the 17th or 18th holes to beat him. It's never happened. The only people who have ever stepped up to the plate and refused to back off have been the good second-tier players like Bob May, Chris DiMarco, and Rocco Mediate. And even they didn't make birdies coming home or otherwise pull off miracle shots. The fact is, nobody has ever, when it counted, come from behind Tiger or even been even with him and gone under par on the last holes to beat him. Again and again, Tiger's truly admirable heroics have been made possible in the first place because others have choked their guts out down the stretch to blow leads against him. I'll start rooting for Tiger AFTER, Nicklaus-like, he loses to a future Hall of Famer who actually catches and passes him with birdies or chip-ins -- and then picks himself off the floor, several times, and finds new ways to win.

It may not be fair to Goliath, but it really is no fun to root for Goliath. Tiger deserves all the credit in the world for his surpassing excellence, his courage, and his growing sense of sportsmanship. But we need a new script to keep things interesting.

View all comments (8) | Leave a comment

dan in michigan| 4.6.09 @ 12:36PM

They have made the course too tough for exciting charges on Sunday. For crying out loud, you have to hit it 280 uphill on 18 just to make the corner! The tournament has been ruined. Breaks my heart.

Willey| 4.6.09 @ 2:32PM

Tiger's the man--ya gotta give it up for the King!

Tim| 4.6.09 @ 2:59PM

Tiger? Tiger's burning bright...

colleen| 4.6.09 @ 4:17PM

GO PHIL GO!

ruth| 4.6.09 @ 8:00PM

Sorry, Colleen--Tiger's a Stanford man; I gotta go with him.

Bob Jones IV| 4.6.09 @ 9:07PM

I wouldn't root against Tiger, however he was limping very slightly on 11 today in the practice round. Even so, he stuck it to about 8 feet on 12.

I still think the best Masters was in either 1975 when Tom Weiskopf and Johnny Miller challenged Jack Nicklaus and came up a day late and dollar short, or in the 1977 Nicklaus-Watson battle.

With all due respect, Quin, don't forget that not all of Tiger's opponents have choked. Rocco played his guts out at last year's US Open and just simply was outplayed.

Great thread line. Thanks for getting my mind off of BO.

Quin| 4.6.09 @ 9:25PM

Bob,
THanks for your comments. I did not mean to imply that Rocco and DiMarco had choked; I meant that those two and Bob May had held their own (but just not made any birdies coming in), while so often the "superstars" choked, or others choked. In other words, three people have at least refused to buckle, even if they didn't actually make the birdies they needed to win (a la Watson three times birdieing 17 to beat Nicklaus), while everybody else actually went backwards against Tiger.
Meanwhile, I agree about 1975, along with 1986. In 1975, both Miller and Weiskopf came SO close to birdieing 18 to force a playoff; truly great stuff.
Take care.

Bob Jones IV| 4.7.09 @ 10:26AM

I feel sorry for DiMarco, May and Rocco. They had to play at the absolute top of their games. All Tiger had to do was just be himself.

As to the others who choked against Tiger, remind me to talk with you sometime about the "all-exempt" tour and its adverse impact on American professional golf!

Have a good week.