Dustin Johnson, the new masters champion - long may he reign

Just imagine…

Tiger Woods’s on the 13th tee, four shots back of the leader in the club house on the final day. A good drive and a great second over the water leave him 15 feet away for an eagle. The putt just skirts the rim and stops on the edge. The patrons groan in anguish but go crazy. On 15, he lays up and pitches right up to the pin for an easy birdie. One can hear the roars in the next county. Two behind with three to play. Woods almost aces the par three 16th and birdies the 7th from just six feet away. All level now. As he addresses the ball on the 18th tee, all is still, not a leaf dare move. And then you wake up!

Lacklustre all day long, leaking bogies and off everyone’s radar, he tried to break Tom Weiskopf’s record of a 13 on the par 3 twelfth but could not even do that. He only shot a 10, dropping nine shots from where he started. And then something clicked in his head. He became the Tiger of old, charging, as above, and had the best finish over the last six holes of anyone in the tournament, birdieing five of the last six holes. The Tiger has left his pug marks on this tournament after all, even as he cheerfully and gracefully helped Dustin Johnson, the winner by more strokes than anyone since his twelve-shot victory in 1997, into a 42 long Green Jacket.

There are many interesting stories of that day to record in this short space. There was a moment when Johnson’s starting four-shot lead had dwindled down to just one in the first five holes as he missed a birdie opportunity on the birdieable par 5 second hole after a dreadful second shot following a stupendous drive birdied the par 4 third after almost driving it, but then bogied the next two. One wondered whether he was beginning to choke to join a growing list of players who had snatched defeat from the jaws of victory. But then he hit a remarkable tee shot to the upper plateau of the par 3 sixth for a clincher six-foot birdie. Were he to have been two feet less in length, his ball would have drifted off 40 feet away for a near certain three putt. He never looked back and pulled away despite Cameron Smith and Sungjae Im pushing him pretty hard.

Smith is an extremely talented golfer with a bright future. The fact that he is the first competitor in the history of the Masters to score four rounds in the sixties is also a tribute to his scrambling skills and the ability to ride one’s luck.  The Australians are tough customers and he’ll be back in April 2021 for a fifth time with fire in his belly to get a Green Jacket. Sungjae Im at 22 and first time out at the Masters is a cool customer if you ever saw one. He showed no nerves whatsoever, playing at this level, drove the ball boringly straight and long on every hole and won the respect of the entire field to finish joint second. Watch out for him.

Justin Thomas, high up as on the list of favourites to win, was frustrated with his chipping. Unable to make the transition between slow greens on the first day and uncertain speeds as the week progressed, he never gained the necessary momentum needed. There’s always another day, Justin; April is just five months away. Rory McIlroy played poorly in the first round but showed his class in the next three. He’ll be back, of course, to get over the trauma of 2011 when he let it get away from him.  And Dylan Frittelli, who was at -11, five shots back, simply frittered away several opportunities although he would not have challenged. He’s earned back an invitation for next year.

Bryson DeChambeau, the heaviest among competitors at 205 pounds, was probably overcome by the weight of his own expectations. He erroneously figured, for this course at least, that one could bludgeon it into submission. Augusta National doesn’t lend itself to that. After all, Zach Johnson won the Masters by never even trying to hit the par 5s in two and yet was -11 over the four rounds on the par 5s. There’s no doubt that long, straight drives are an advantage but it’s the short game that ultimately wins it. Laying up on par 5s holds no fears except that you might not get a birdie, whereas going for two on the green every time brings water, bushes, bunkers and other variables into the equation, which reduce the expected value. Johnson scored birdies on 13 and 15 on the final day by laying up. However, DeChambeau did have a lot of bad luck and his -2 finish does not reflect on his capability nor diminish him as a player, as a pioneer and as a terrific risk-taker. He’ll be around for long.

The Masters is a strictly invitational tournament sponsored by a private organisation. Even the reigning champion has to be invited. The objective is to stage a golf show that is enjoyable to all — members, patrons, players, guests and to interested golfers generally anywhere in the world. All periodic improvements are made to enhance that stated objective; an unstated objective is to create more traditions, memorials and facilities and allow myths to grow out of them for patrons to “remember” what all this means. Once here, a visitor is in an earthly paradise, enveloped by the gentility and comforting tones of the deep South. There are famous landmarks that add to its timeless and unfathomable quality and mystique. The 330-yard-long Magnolia Lane, which is lined with 61 ancient Magnolia trees the crowns of which meet to form a tunnel leading up to the Founder’s Circle, is an annual emotional trek for players and members. On the circle is crafted, in yellow flowers, the world famous and abiding Masters logo in the shape of the Continental United States. Rae’s Creek meanders from the pond at the beginning of Amen Corner on the 11th, past the pivot, which is the deadly par 3 twelfth (to access and exit which are the two crossover bridges honouring Ben Hogan and Byron Nelson, respectively), before lingering between banks of Azaleas that frame the 13th fairway and green before disappearing into the water body at the 16th hole.

Crossing the Sarazen Bridge that abuts the pond fronting the 15th green is the Arnold Palmer plaque affixed to a drinking water facility at the 16th and a bit farther, between the 16th and 17th holes, is a plaque on another drinking water fountain honouring the six-time winner of the Green Jacket, Jack Nicklaus. Near the 17th green is the Record hexagonal drinking water fountain, which places on record the name of each victor of the tournament, the year of victory and the winning score. Ike’s pond named after President Dwight D Eisenhower is the manmade spring-fed lake around which is played that most popular par 3 contest (sadly missed at this Masters).

One of the memorable features at the Masters is the famed Masters Patron Shop, normally open for just two weeks till the last day of the tournament. It purveys Masters branded men’s, women’s, and kids golf shirts and tee shirts, sweaters, pullovers, headwear and assorted related accessories, to patrons on the premises. Long, snaking lines form and move slowly into the vast floor where hundreds of patrons at a time throng to shop. Dozens of cheerful youth assist patrons without ever pressing anyone to buy anything. Patrons can buy whatever they want, without limit, and have them shipped to wherever they wish. Lots of crowds but there is no pushing and shoving. This year, owing to this coronavirus, the shop has shifted online with the same merchandise. Anybody with a link to the patron’s shop can get access any number of times but for only 15 minutes each time to allow for orderly queuing, the equivalent of the aforementioned long, snaking lines. One can keep adding to the cart on any number of visits but the transaction must be completed by midnight of the final day. One somehow misses the mingling with other patrons in the shop, the bright-eyed and bushy-tailed, even smiling and helpful, shop assistants, and the joy of having the “goods” in one’s hand as one exits the shop.

There are others: A now famous ritual held on the Tuesday of the tournament week is the Masters Champions dinner, hosted by the current title-holder for members of the Masters Club of which only all past winners are members. This is the most unique and exclusive Club in the world.

And now to the newest member of this exclusive club.

In his post third round interview, Johnson stated that the trophy was not yet his as there was still a lot of golf to play. He was prescient in that. With Cameron and Sungjae hanging on like limpets, it was only when Johnson was safely on the green on the dangerous par 3 twelfth that he breathed a sigh of relief and felt more secure. Everybody develops nerves on that hole! Normally, there are legions of patrons roaring in the victor as he birdies 13, 14, 15 and coasts in to seal the victory. There was none of that. A warm embrace with his teared-up caddy (his brother), a kiss from his partner Paulina, no handshakes from several past winners but big congratulatory grins and finally the Green Jacket placed on his shoulders by Tiger Woods, the previous champion, in the Butler Cabin where such ceremonials are always conducted. Now for the reality to slowly sink into him as a sort of long-awaited anti-climax. He knows he is strong, powerful and the World Number One — so there’s much more to come.

See y’all next year folks!