Masters Memories: Phil’s wonder shot, Tiger’s non-DQ

It’s less than a month until the 2018 Masters gets underway.

Yep, you can now officially start getting excited about seeing Augusta National in all of its vibrant glory again very, very soon.

As the countdown to the first men’s major championship of the season continues to tick down, our team will be sharing their favourite Masters moments… as well as
an Augusta incident that they can’t/won’t/never will forget.

Here, staff writer David Cunninghame shares his…

My favourite Masters moment 

With Sunday roars echoing around the trees of Amen Corner on the Sunday of the 2010 Masters, Phil Mickelson was one shot clear of the chasing pack as he stood on the tee of the par-5 13th tee… only to then pull his tee shot way right into the tress. Some 207 yards from the pin, he found his ball sitting up in the pine straw with an inviting gap between two pine trees facing him but the small matter of Rae’s Creek to negotiate.

Under immense pressure and with everything on the line, ‘Lefty’ pulled out a 6-iron and, into the setting Georgia sunshine, hit one of the greatest shots in Masters history, stiffing it to four feet. I can remember jumping out of my seat with excitement. He went on to two-putt, which was disappointing, but won the tournament to claim his third Green Jacket.

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My most unforgettable Masters moment

The 2013 Masters. Tiger is back and he’s in contention. He has 71 yards to the pin on the par-5 15th hole and, after clattering the pin, his ball rebounds back into the water. Tiger takes his drop, hits it onto the green and makes a boge-six.

What transpired was perhaps the most bizarre event in Masters history.  

Tiger had, in fact ,taken an illegal drop. A ‘television viewer’ had spotted something strange about it and contacted the tournament’s competition committee chairman. The rules officials came to the conclusion that Woods had not taken an illegal drop but would later go back on this after an immense social media storm.

Tiger, therefore, had signed for an incorrect score but, surprisingly, was not disqualified. Instead, he received a two-stroke penalty on the Saturday morning. This was because of a rule introduced a few years earlier at the Masters that allows a player to stay in the tournament if a rules dispute was based on television evidence.

Tiger would go onto finish the week in a tie for fourth, on 5-under, four shots behind eventual winner Adam Scott. I can’t help but wonder what might have happened on the back-9 on Sunday had it not been for that one eagle-eyed viewer…

What are your favourite or unforgettable Masters moments?

Share your most vidid memories of the first men’s major championship of the year in our Comments section below.