Master's Recap

That was probably as interesting a Master's as I can remember. The lead up to Tiger's return was huge. I thought his press conference on Monday was great and helped set the table for his return, he answered a lot of tough questions and looked like the Tiger of old. It was also nice to see the warm reception he received from the fans. Then on Wednesday the TV spot we made took off with over 2.5 million views on YouTube. Of course the real action was on the golf course and I am still amazed that Tiger was able to play so well on Thursday and Friday after taking five months off from competitive golf. I had in my mind the US Open after his father died, his first major back, and he missed the cut. I really didn't know which way this would go. It was great to see him and a lot of other great names all in contention for the weekend.

Saturday turned out to be more like Sunday this year. The golf was amazing, with Phil almost making three eagles in a row, which instantly got him back in the game. Despite some serious problems off the tee and lackluster putting, Tiger was still in the top five and only a couple of strokes off the lead. We all expected Sunday to be amazing. Lee Westwood could win his first, well deserved, major. Phil could win his third green jacket and overcome a terrible year with both his wife and Mom battling breast cancer. KJ Choi was the steady Eddie who would not go away. Fifty year old, former champion Fred Couples was still very much in the mix. And finally Tiger could pull off the most improbable win ever.

Unfortunately Sunday was not as dramatic as we'd hoped. Phil pretty much ran away with it and was never in much danger on the back nine. Tiger's tee issues continued and his putting was terrible. KJ had two bad shots that pretty much killed him. The crowd favorite, fifty year old Fred Couples, was right there until he put one in the water on 12. Lee Westwood stuck around, but Phil was just too good. His second shot on the 13th hole, was so good that he deserved to win on that shot alone.

One thing I do feel sure about, Tiger will win the US Open at Pebble Beach and the Open Championship at St. Andrews this year.