Sunday, April 14, 2013

The Masters: Adam At Augusta


Whew. 

What a tournament. What a Masters. What a week.

After 4 incredible days of golf, Adam Scott has finally grabbed a major championship that he rightfully deserved. It didn't come easy, and it almost didn't come at all. 

Scott started the day 1 shot off of the leaders, Angel Cabrera and Brandt Snedeker. Adam started off slowly, making a sloppy bogey on the first hole and being forced to scramble on the 2nd hole for a par. But on the back 9, that's where Adam (and the tournament) really took off. After getting a lucky break on 13, he went on to make 3 birdies coming in to post -9. Hole 18 was where his shining moment came: making a 20+ footer which put him in the lead. It looked like he was going to put on the green jacket soon. Until...

Angel Cabrera, who was hanging around the lead for most of the day, hits the shot of his life and sticks his approach shot on 18 to 2 feet and makes birdie to tie Adam. And with that, we were off to a playoff.

You would think that, with major championship pressure along with playing in the pouring rain, the quality of the playoff would be a disappointment. Well, that was certainly not the case. Both Cabrera and Scott pipe their drives on the 18th, and, although they both missed the green, they both hit nice chips to save their pars. Then, they both smoke their drives on #10, the 2nd playoff hole (Angel did this with an iron, which was ridiculous). Angel then hit a nice shot to the middle of the green. Adam followed suit with a 15 footer, pin high. 

Then came the putts.

Cabrera's burns the edge! Almost forced Adam to make his, but instead makes par and left Adam with a chance to win The Masters outright. 

And with that, Adam took his putt and BURIED IT. 

Gone are the days of Australians hoping to win The Masters. Gone are the days of Adam Scott being one of the "best players without a major". Gone are the shots to be played of this years Masters.

After heartbreak for Adam in 2012 at the Open, many of us were glad to see him finally break through. His potential that was seen at THE PLAYERS a decade ago was finally realized at the greatest golf tournament in the world. Hopefully, this just opens the door for him. At only 32, he still has a lot of time to capture more titles and become the Hall of Fame golfer that I know he can be.

Congratulations, Adam!

NOTE: Before I leave, let me say a few things about The Masters. If you weren't a golf fan before today and just watched today's round, then you should totally pick up the sport. It's not as easy as they made it look, and trust me, you'll be as hooked as many of us are when you play golf. Also, I'd like to say that the back 9 on Masters Sunday is arguably one of the greatest sporting times in the world. There was so much drama, chaos, and action going on that it was almost impossible to keep up. Thank you, Augusta National, for always bringing us a fantastic tournament year in and year out, and we can't wait to see you soon.

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