Home > The M.O. > Archives > 2007 > April > 09 > Entry
The Masters: As green as it gets
First of all, there is no denying that the Masters is the greatest golf event in the world for my money. The sad thing is that despite golf’s international growth over the years and the impact Tiger Woods has had in taking the sport to a broader demographic, the most important and cherished tournament in the world is still played at the home of a bunch of very rich, very old white men in a state with a spotty civil rights record, to say the least. In the vein of exclusivity, the Masters is also the least inclusive field in golf due to its stringent invitation criteria.
As for the changes made to the course over the past few years, they have taken away a lot of the charm of the course and changed the way the tournament is played. Eagles are almost nonexistent, and even birdies have diminished to the point that a score over par won this year’s tournament. The U.S. Golf Association has already jerked with the Open to a ridiculous degree to make winning scores approach par, so I guess it is only natural that Augusta follow in its footsteps. But shaving off one or two hundred yards would make it much more entertaining to watch. With so many bogeys and so few birdies, rare are the wild cheers from galleries on Saturday and Sunday. As they walked off the 18th green, players looked like they’d just spent five hours getting their butts whipped. Much of that could be attributed to Mother Nature, but the longer course played a role as well.
When play began Sunday I imagine that you couldn’t get anything close to even-money odds that Tiger Woods would win. And for awhile, it seemed as if Tiger would march to a historic 5th green jacket. Tiger began play a few strokes back, but almost on cue, the leaders began to struggle, and Tiger made up ground. The one man who didn’t struggle was eventual winner Zach Johnson. Although I like to cheer for underdogs, I had no interest in seeing this nobody win his second career tournament at Augusta. Just like with the big games in other sports, I want to see the big names win the big events. Sure, I think Tiger is a bit overexposed, but I wanted to see him step up when all of the money is on the line. That is why I watch sports, to see the world’s best athletes competing at the top of their game on the biggest stage. Of course, I also like underdog stories, but this Johnson cat didn’t do anything for me.
And he really didn’t do anything for me at the end of his round. With Tiger still in the hunt (two down with three to play), Johnson celebrated with friends and family on the side of the 18th green. His wife and friends surrounded him, and when Bill McAtee went to ask Johnson how he felt, the golfer went to the Jesus card. I am all for athletes (or anyone for that matter) living a life of faith (any faith), but to parade it in the manner Johnson did was a bit tough to swallow, especially considering the tournament had not been won, and Tiger was still lurking. Johnson conveyed how significant it was for him to win on Easter Sunday and that he felt Jesus was out there with him on the course. Apparently Jesus loves being at Augusta as much as the patrons do.
Before anyone gets all worked up about me taking issue with the thanks he gave or the manner in which he celebrated, understand that my biggest beef was with the fact that he actually broke down into tears while giving an interview surrounded by his family. If Tiger Woods (or any golfer, for that matter) is out on the course with a chance to tie your score, you best be on the driving range staying loose or sitting in the scorer’s tent collecting your thoughts and staying focused. Johnson should be giving thanks that Tiger did not birdie two of the final holes in regulation, because if taken to a playoff, Woods would have made Johnson his champion’s dinner Sunday. I will give the young golfer a pass, because it is a position in which he is not accustomed to being, and he played his butt off, showing nerves of steel unmatched in the field yesterday. But he would be wise to not count his chickens next time, if there is a next time.
But maybe the funniest part of the coverage, and Johnson’s naiveté, was on display when he was presented the green jacket in the Butler Cabin, the holiest of sites for American golf and certainly for Augusta National. Johnson individually thanked each of his sponsors, a move unheard of at sacrosanct Augusta National. You could almost hear the blood boiling in Augusta chairman Billy Payne’s head when the young Johnson began listing his litany of sponsors like a NASCAR driver. The upside of this hilarious moment, however, was the shocked look and repressed laughter of Phil Mickelson as we watched this newbie step in it. Certainly Phil knows that golfers are expected to bow their heads, compliment the course and the members and say thank you at Augusta. That is all. This tournament makes certain that every bit of marketing, branding and image-making they do is done in a very measured way; for example, did you once hear the announcers mention the winning purse? Certainly Johnson’s lack of etiquette and his aw-shucksiness don’t make him a bad guy, but they did reinforce in me the wish that Tiger (or Retief Goosen or Stuart Appleby) could have ruined his one shining moment.
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By Lefty
April 9, 2007 8:14 PM | Link to this
Great analysis of a pretty boring weekend at Augusta.