This is the first time in a very long time that I have watched any professional golf for an extended period of time. With all the LIV vs. PGA Tour drama it’s been a major turn-off for a variety of reasons. It was refreshing to spend a couple days on the couch watching and listening to the Masters content.
While many of the group chats I am in were saying the event was over after Ludvig Åberg, Max Homa and Collin Morikawa dropped shots through Amen Corner, I thought it was still a very exciting finish to The Masters. Scottie showed everyone why he is the best ball striker in the World, and Ludvig certainly added a bit of hope there might be a fresh face in a green jacket.
The hour belongs to Scottie Scheffler, a four-shot lead with two to play. There you are.
Verne Lundquist in his final call following 40 years of Masters Coverage
After playing a little timid and struggling with some distance control on the approach shots early on, Scottie Scheffler charged ahead mid-way through Sunday to his second Green Jacket. Firing back-to-back birdies on 9 and 10 to get a two shot lead headed into Amen Corner, Scottie looked so composed all weekend—absolute killer. Oh, and he added more birdies at 13, 14, and 16. He never shied away from hitting shots tight but didn’t play irresponsibly either. World number 1 and he showed it. Scottie is playing extremely well headed into the rest of the season. Though, he has yet to win beyond the month of April. Can he keep up the momentum into the remainder of the season and potentially win another Major?
Amen Corner continues to gobble up the believers. Scheffler played this stretch at even par, while his competition dropped shots all around him. A bit reminiscent of Tiger’s win in 2019. Masters rookie Ludvig Åberg hung in there all weekend to finish solo second, never seemingly letting the pressure get to him on what is the biggest stage in the game. Dude absolutely crushes the ball and a fine short game to back it all up. Other than the big mistake on 11 missing left into the pond fronting the green—speaking of Amen Corner, but like so many before him and so many after him, it happens—Ludvig steadied the ship on 12 and birdied the 13th and 14th, but it was never enough after a costly double bogey on the opening leg to Amen Corner.
Collin Morikawa’s ball striking performance Friday through Sunday was impressive right up until the 9th hole on Sunday. Early on it looked like he might have an edge on Scottie but could not convert on many putts in tight to take the lead away. The two-time major champion let things further get away from him with mistakes on the 9th and 11th holes keeping him out of contention.
Max Homa finishes in the top 3, his highest finish in a Major to date. An impressive effort through the week, including playing alongside his childhood hero Tiger Woods. Ultimately faltering on Saturday and Sunday shooting 73, 73. He is continuing to make a name for himself at big time venues. Hopefully it is only a matter of time before we see Max win a major.
Tommy Fleetwood looked like he had the round of the day going on Sunday. The broadcast kept coming back to him, with great approach shots into greens and putts coming oh so close. Backdoored a top 3 finish in the spirit of Rory McIlroy.
In LIV-related player news, Tyrell Hatton continues to be one of the most entertaining professional golfers out there: always fun to watch him when he plays well, and equally as entertaining when he doesn’t. To close out his 2024 Masters campaign, he fired a pretty great round of 69 (-3) on Sunday to move up into that top 12 finishing position to secure an invite next year. Defending Masters champion, Jon Rahm, just made the cut. Many pondered if his move to LIV under-prepared him for this event, or did he just not have much luck this week. 8 three putts on the week—yikes!
Bryson DeChambeau took the lead on Thursday after an impressive opening round of 65 (-7), managed through the nasty wind on Friday by showing restraint in his game. Then it all came crumbling down on the back nine Saturday, followed by a ho-hum performance on Sunday and eventually mostly dropped from coverage to finish in the top 10. Bryson has only shot below “par” once since his infamous comments over 15 rounds ago when he dubbed Augusta National a par 67.
How much do we realistically expect out of Tiger Woods anymore? We are now 5 years removed from his 2019 Masters win, and unfortunately it’s pretty clear his body can’t keep up. It’s a bit painful to watch. Oh, and Rory. What’s going on? Guy looks like he needs a serious short game overhaul. Far too many mistakes with wedge or putter in his hand.
Jason Day’s outfits were quite the talk throughout the week, while Tiger’s Sun Day Red clothing line turned out a little better than his launch event would have made it appear. I particularly liked the scripting on day 1. The rather large SDR + Tiger logo, shown on the back of his Sunday outfit, is still bad though.
Fred Ridley, Augusta National Chairman, confirmed the club was in favour of the golf ball rollback, stating they, being the Green Jackets, don’t want to play the course at 8000 yards. It makes a lot of sense for them to support this after years of buying surrounding property—namely land from Augusta Country Club—to continue to extend the course (as well as expand their facilities in general). In my eyes, the rollback should be bifurcated, but Augusta National is speaking in professional golf terms, so I get it.
The wind late Thursday and on Friday really added to the test, but it became a pace of play issue on Friday. And, was it any more obvious with all of the wind delays that the game is already bifurcated? Blowing greens in between groups and guys backing off shots waiting for the wind to calm down… this doesn’t happen at any other level. When you are playing for obscene amounts of money, it makes sense, but the game is already so much different at the professional level than the amateur level—bifurcate it!
Easily observed this week, the best way to test these players is through firm and fast conditions on a course with large run off areas accompanied by well contoured greens and surrounds. It’s no wonder scores are so low at most other tour venues throughout the remainder of the year. Soft, lush conditions, with rough that catches the ball not far offline, is not a recipe for a supremely challenging environment no matter how long the course is. You cannot manufacture that week in and week out, but the TOUR really needs to start getting better venues at least for the elevated events if they want a more competitive showing.
I look forward to seeing the US Open at Pinehurst No. 2 after how Augusta National played this week, which has similar elements to test the players. It depends on weather, of course, but it will be an exciting week in June to watch golf again. There is a certain charm to the Masters that no other tournament has. It would take a lot for me to watch more than a few hours of even just the other majors as golf season gets underway here in Canada.
