I have to go with Van de Velde. Firstly he’d started the day well clear, and this lead had been maintained throughout the course of the day. This shows he was in “protect” mode, conserving his lead. Factor in the ridiculous set up of the course in 99 and this should have also made him more cautious.
Van de Velde should have hit enough club to get him over the burn (4 / 5 iron), then hit short of the burn with a 6 / 7 iron, and then hit wedge into the green. Even if he thought he needed bogey to win that’s the play. After getting away with a pushed drive there was absolutely, 100%, no discussion, no other shot to hit than wedge short of the burn to his favourite yardgage, followed by wedge or sand wedge 15 feet left of the pin. I don’t care what his lie was like, I don’t care what he considered the right thing to do. If you have 5 for the championship (as many state he thought he did) then take those 5. He actually had 6, and should have been aware of that. Furthermore, aiming the 2 iron at the stands brought luck and fate into the equation. What if he gets a flyer? What if he hooks it? What if he fans it right of the stands? There is no way that he made the right call. What would Tiger have done in that situation? No way he’s pulling 2 iron, no way Stevie lets him either!
As for Romero, this boy had fired 10 birdies in his round. The course was benign. Players were going low and he needed to post a score. 2 iron probably wasn’t the shot to hit, but he got a ridiculous bounce OB. To then show the guts and character to hit a choked down, cut fairway wood from the same lie to 20 feet was incredible. He recovered instantly and played one of the shots of the championship, followed by nutting a drive down 18. The 8 iron he hit in was a poor shot, but at that point I believe he was 2 behind Harrington who had just eagled the par 5.
As for Harrington, he was the one who actually choked the most on Sunday. He hit a dreadful drive on 18, then absolutely chunked a 5 iron from a perfect lie which was heading OB had he made contact properly. Harrington went down 18 with the lead, unlike Romero, and threw up on himself.
Garcia showed good, sensible course management when playing 18 in regulation. He was confident in his ball striking to hit two long irons, and indeed his tee shot was striped. It didn’t then help having to wait for 5 mins while some volunteer bunker raker fannied about. He was unlucky that his putt didn’t drop, but such is golf.
In order of choking, I’ll go as follows:
Van de Velde
Harrington
Romero
Garcia
And what an enjoyable day of golf it was – golf should be exciting, with birdies, eagles and disasters. One can only hope The Masters Tournament Committee were watching…