Ted Scott re-lives Scottie Scheffler’s final hole Masters drama

As Scottie Scheffler gears up to defend his Masters crown, his caddie Ted Scott has revealed exactly what went down on the 72nd hole at Augusta National last year.  

Leading by five as he walked to the final green on the final day, the American proceeded to four-putt– still good enough for a three-shot margin of victory over Rory McIlroy but a bizarre, almost comical way to win your maiden major.  

Reflecting on that triumph in the latest edition of bunkered (issue 200, on-sale now), Scott relived the final green drama and explained how he helped his man finally get the ball in the hole. 

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“It’s funny, after his first putt, I just laughed,” said Scott. “I mean, that’s a really quick putt and he must have run it six feet past the hole. I remember he turned to me and said, ‘Sorry dude, I was trying to make it.’  

“The next one was another good, aggressive putt. Nothing out of the ordinary. It was the third one that was like, okay, let’s just calm down here. It was just haphazard. He lost his concentration a bit. So, I decided to walk in at that point and just make sure that his mind hadn’t wandered to some strange place.  

Scottie Scheffler is the 2022 Masters champion. #themasters pic.twitter.com/smCowk5i8V

— The Masters (@TheMasters) April 10, 2022

“I think I just said something like ‘Hey, if you’re not going to hole it, can you just get it close?’ He laughed and said, ‘No, it’s cool. I’m going to focus and make it’ and, thankfully, he did. The thing about great players throughout history is that they never coasted in. You’ve got to focus and commit to every single shot.  

“Fortunately, we had a few shots in the bank to work with! 

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Scott added that he believes Scheffler, currently No.2 on the OWGR, is more than capable of retaining his title next month. 

In the almost 90-year history of The Masters, only three players have ever successfully defended the Green Jacket: Jack Nicklaus, Sir Nick Faldo and Tiger Woods. Illustrious company but not beyond Scheffler’s wit, according to his right-hand man. 

Using the example of his title defence at the WM Phoenix Open last month, Scott said: “You know, that’s an interesting tournament. You kind of run the gauntlet the whole week. It’s a different kind of event. The pressure is not like anything you’ll face at any other tournament.  

“For Scottie to step up and win as the defending champion and knowing that the world No.1 spot was on the line again, that took a look of guts and talent in many different areas. It was really impressive and it bodes well for The Masters. 

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“Augusta National is a place where your game needs to be on but where you also need to be mentally tough. Scottie showed he’s capable of that in Phoenix. He is an exceptionally resilient player with a sick short game. You just never know. You could do everything right and just run into a buzzsaw of a performance from somebody else. But the question was ‘can he make a successful defence?’.  

“There’s no reason why he can’t.” 

Get more!  

Read the interview with Ted Scott in full in the latest edition of bunkered (issue 200), on-sale now from all good newsagents.  

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Michael McEwan is the Deputy Editor of bunkered and has been part of the team since 2004. In that time, he has interviewed almost every major figure within the sport, from Jack Nicklaus, to Rory McIlroy, to Donald Trump. The host of the multi award-winning bunkered Podcast and a member of Balfron Golfing Society, Michael is the author of three books and is the 2023 PPA Scotland 'Writer of the Year' and 'Columnist of the Year'. Dislikes white belts, yellow balls and iron headcovers. Likes being drawn out of the media ballot to play Augusta National.

Deputy Editor