Let the arguments begin about The Masters. With the conditions
as they were in Augusta, there were going to be none of those
charges that have made this the most anticipated golf tournament in
the world.
n By Marc David Staff writerLet the arguments begin about The Masters.
With the conditions as they were in Augusta, there were going to be none of those charges that have made this the most anticipated golf tournament in the world.
Good or bad? Is it more fun to watch Lefty or Tiger illustrate their deft touch in their short games or watch Zach Johnson grind his way to a victory in the 71st Masters?
I’m not sure there’s any turning back, although my favorite comment about the tournament came from a blogger.
“Hey, if I wanted to watch golfers struggle I’d watch the partners in my foursome,” he wrote.
I can’t say I agree, and yet it it’s easy to see the blogger’s point. It wasn’t a whole lot of fun watching golfers hit shots that rimmed the cup and then ended up 20 feet away. Or watching balls on the green that were hardly touched rolling off as if the golfers were putting on their dinner tables.
Tiger Woods gave away the best chance he had at winning by finishing bogey-bogey on Thursday and Saturday. Phil Mickelson was never in it. And yet, the golf writers and columnists all seemed to assume that nobody else had a chance before the tournament started.
Difficult conditions are a great equalizer. Sure, those who are best around the greens are going to have the best chances. And we all know what Woods and Mickelson are capable of around the greens.
Nevertheless, it would be unfair to call Johnson’s win a fluke. I’m not sure it’s possible to win by fluke at Augusta. The course is just too difficult. There are so many holes when shots that go astray lead to double and triple bogeys, as Mickelson and Stuart Appleby in particular found out.
No, winning The Masters is not fluky whether Johnson never wins another tournament. As Woods so aptly put it after finishing tied for second, “He went out there, grinded away and made shots he needed to make.”
So does it take the enjoyment out of The Masters watching Zach Johnson win? Not in the least.
We can all learn something from the resilient 31-year-old journeyman whose only previous win on tour was at the Bell South Classic three years earlier. Forget the conditions. He finished 57th in driving distance and never once went for the 13th or 15th greens on his second shot Saturday or Sunday, and yet still walked away with birdies.
What he taught us best was that you manage your game well and keep big scores off your card and you’re going to be successful whether it’s at Gilroy Golf Course or Augusta.
It’s that simple conceptually. Putting that into play, however, is different. That’s why the majority of us don’t make our living on the golf course and Johnson does.
