Tiger This, Tiger That, Oh Yeah! Its the Masters this weekend!
Tiger Woods, Tiger Woods, Tiger Woods, Tiger Woods, Tiger Woods, Tiger Woods, That’s all your gonna hear in Augusta and possibly North America if you’re a golf fan this weekend. They could replace the azaleas with cactus, the flagstick logo with mud flap girls, the green jackets with crushed pink flowers, and no one would notice it.
This is Woods’ 18th Masters, which doesn’t seem possible. He has more seniority at Augusta National than some of the pine trees. He has pretty much spent half of his life playing this tournament.
He was, is and will continue to be the centerpiece of this and every other major until he croaks. It’s the natural order of things, especially with Tiger only a few weeks removed from his first PGA Tour win since 2009. Woods’ blip on the Masters Radar screen is larger than everyone else’s. But there are other storylines cleared for landing for me to tell you about.
Can Rory McIlroy win at the masters a year after he shot 80 to blow a four-stroke, final round lead? And is it true that guests now ask their Caddies to point out exactly where McIlroy nearly pull-jerked his drive into a cabin sitting room wayyyyyyy off the No. 10 fairway? Can world No. 1 Luke Donald finally win a major?
Can the great lefty Phil Mickelson win his fourth green jacket? Can the highest ranked American, Hunter Mahan do a Kentucky (NCAA Reference) and dominate? Can defending champion Charl Schwartzel get recognized by anyone?
These are the Masters Story plots, or actually, the subplots. You-know-who and no Harry Potter fans, we aren’t talking about Lord Voldemort, we are talking about Tiger Woods who will get the star treatment.
When he tees off at 10:35 a.m. ET Thursday, Woods will do so as a four-time Masters champion, as a resurgent player trending in the right direction and as a 4-1 favorite to win this week. But that same Woods hasn’t won a major since 2008 and hasn’t won here since 2005. That also doesn’t seem possible, until you look at his medical chart.
Woods has been stuck at the 14 career major victories stoplight for way too long. He remains four behind Jack Nicklaus in career majors wins but only one behind the “Golden Bear” when it comes to career PGA Tour victories. A win here this week would tie him with the Golden Bear. Woods though has been very vocal this week saying he wants the green jacket more than anything in his career.
Numbers finally say Woods is on the verge of being Tiger again. He’s taken his game from the practice range, to the practice round, to a round in which they keep score for money. One good round has become two, then three, and then four. Four good rounds became a win at Bay Hill (Tigers last PGA Tour win)
Woods has finished tied for fourth here the past two years in Augusta, and he’s done it while fixing his swing. But this year it seems to be all about Tiger and him winning that green jacket.
Will Tiger win the green jacket? Will another nobody take the jacket? Stay tuned golf fans to the Masters this weekend; I promise it will be a good one.
That’s all for now folks, thanks for reading my blog, please look at all my other ones! Follow me on twitter @KevinCawthra, until next time
YOU STAY CLASSY VANCOUVER