Great Scott! Adam becomes the first Australian to put on the famous Green Jacket after nail biting finish at Augusta
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The final frontier for Australian sport was crossed on a historic, rainy afternoon in Georgia on Sunday as Adam Scott ended 76 years of hurt and became the first man from down under to wear the green jacket.
The 32-year-old from Adelaide who lives in the Swiss mountains climbed the summit following a sudden-death play-off against the Argentine Angel Cabrera.
He did so in the most spectacular manner imaginable as he followed a birdie at the 18th in regulation play with another at the second extra hole. What a moment of redemption this was for the man who threw away The Open at Royal Lytham last year when he bogeyed each of the last four holes.
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Champion: Adam Scott became the first Australian to win the US Masters
Embrace: Second placed Angel Cabrera (right) congratulates Scott on his win
A gripping afternoon played in an almost continual downpour drew to a conclusion amidst golf of breathtaking quality. This was one of the great Masters finishes, beginning on the 18th hole in normal time, as Scott rolled in his 20ft birdie putt to take the lead by a shot.
‘C’mon Aussies,’ screamed Scott, who was in rapture as the ball caught the edge of the hole and dropped. Standing in the middle of the 18th fairway was the only man who could catch him. Imagine listening to all those roars and needing a birdie of your own?
Cabrera has nerves that don’t break. He got his birdie with a stunning shot that finished next to the hole. The crowd here had seen one shot worthy of winning any Masters and now, almost unbelievably, they had witnessed another. And still it was not over.
Nice fit: Bubba Watson (left) helps Adam Scott into the Green Jacket
So close: Angel Cabrera had a chance to win it but his putt fell inches short
Third place: Jason Day was in the running right until the end but ended up third
Back to the 18th hole they came for the first sudden death play-off hole, where Cabrera’s pitch grazed the edge of the hole. Now they went to the 10th where Cabrera’s putt finished agonizingly behind the hole. How it did not drop is a mystery but no-one would begrudge an Australian a moment of luck after all the near misses. How Scott took full advantage. ‘This is the time to stand up and find out how much you want it,’ he said to himself.
We saw how much he wanted it, as he yelled in jubilation once the putt had dropped. At that moment he thought of Greg Norman, his inspiration and the man who finished runner-up on three occasions at Augusta. ‘He has been a hero to all the young Australians and helped us so much,’ said Scott.
‘Part of this absolutely belongs to him.’
Remarkably, neither Scott nor Cabrera led with three holes to play.
England's finest: Lee Westwood was the only Englishman to come in the top 10
Another Australian, Jason Day had delivered moments of pure brilliance but also a young man’s mistakes and there were two more that led to bogeys at the 16th and the 17th. It proved the difference between a place in the play-off and having to settle for third place. As disappointing as this was for the 25 year old from Victoria, he will be back and he will win majors.
Some men feel sick playing the most fabled back nine in the game. Cabrera spent quiet moments bouncing his ball on his putter. With his son Angel jnr on the bag he was having the time of his life.
He was trying to compose a little poetry of his own, since back home in Argentina it was the 90th birthday of Roberto de Vicenzo, the greatest South American golfer of all. He did him proud, for Cabrera didn’t lose this Masters. Scott won it with strokes of genius.
Disappointment: Tiger Woods was unable to add another Green Jacket to his collection
Not quite enough: Brandt Snedeker lost ground with a poor final round
The green jacket in Australia has taken on mythical status following 76 years of hurt. No fewer than eight editions have ended with Aussie golfers finishing runner-up. Some of the tales have been heartbreaking. Think Norman, losing a six stroke last round lead to Sir Nick Faldo in 1996, for a start.
Only two major sporting events remained without Aussie names on them, and they knew they were never going to win football’s World Cup. The other was the Masters.
What excitement there must have been in Australia at the death. Nerves must have been shredded, but it would have been all worth it.
Day and Scott were joint runner’s-up two years ago. The others who have finished second down the years are Jim Ferrier, Bruce Crampton, Jack Newton and, on no fewer than three occasions, the luckless Norman.
Good performance: Marc Leishman played well to earn himself a fifth place finish
Teeing off: Adam Scott drives from the third hole on a tense final day
Where were the Europeans? Excellent young Dane Thorbjorn Olesen was continuing his heartening recovery from an opening 78 to make it all the way back to four under and a position in the top ten with a 68. Sergio Garcia, the man who has had more top tens in majors than any man in history who hasn’t won one, added one more with a 70. So did Lee Westwood with a 71. Then there was Bernhard Langer.
No wonder they say time flashes by in the wink of an eye. Twenty years have passed since Langer won the second of his green jackets but the seasons melted away over the opening holes as the indefatigable German put together an amazing charge.
If there was one recurring theme in this 77th edition it might be the astounding feats of men from either end of the age spectrum.
Masterful: Jason Day plays one of many excellent shots
Missed: Woods reacts to a poor shot on the fourth hole
At one end we had 14-year-old Tianlang Guan leaving the place agog as he followed the wonderful achievement of simply making it into the field here with making the halfway cut and winning the Silver Cup as the leading amateur.
At the other, we had Fred Couples notching a fourth consecutive top 15 finish since passing his 50th birthday and 55 year old Langer, who started with three straight birdies to move within one of the lead.
He also holed great par putts at the fourth and fifth. He couldn’t keep this going, could he? Alas he dropped shots at the sixth and seventh and the magic had gone.
Out of the sand: Cabrera hits from a bunker on the eighth hole
Great Dane: Thorbjorn Olesen plays a shot
Alongside him was Westwood. The Englishman, with two top three finishes here in the last three years, should have eagled the second but followed that two-putt birdie from 8ft with another birdie from tap-in range at the 7th to be four behind. Operation stealth was proceeding nicely but his chance went with a double bogey seven at the unlucky 13th.
What about Tiger Woods, who began four behind? There was no early final day charge from him.
Would the event ever get over the stench if Woods had won after he should have disqualified himself on Saturday morning for his flagrant breach of the rules? After a miserable first eight holes played in two over par, he flickered into life with consecutive birdies at the 9th and 10th and another birdie at the 13th. But he was always too far back and finished with a 70 to be four adrift.
Thanks, guys: Tiger Woods waves to the crowd as he walks off at the 18th
Lining it up: Adam Scott lines up a chip shot to the 13th green
US MASTERS BY NUMBERS - DAY FOUR AT AUGUSTA
Adam Scott claimed his first major title with a dramatic play-off victory over Argentina's Angel Cabrera at Augusta on Sunday.
Here are some of the notable figures from the final round.
0 - Amount of majors Tiger Woods has won when trailing going into the final round.
0 - Number of Australians to win at Augusta before Scott's triumph.
4 - Major championships won by players using the anchored putters due to be banned in 2016. Scott's win completes the set after Keegan Bradley (2011, US PGA), Webb Simpson (2012 US Open) and Ernie Els (2012 Open).
19 - Nineteen of the last 23 Masters winners have come from the final group. Zach Johnson (2007), Charl Schwartzel (2011), Bubba Watson (2012) and Scott are the exceptions.
55 - The age of Bernhard Langer, who had dreams of becoming golf's oldest major champion after starting his round with three straight birdies.
9 - Pars in succession made by Scott from the fourth hole in his final round.
1.1million - Prize money in pounds won by Scott.
68 - Denmark's Thorbjorn Olesen shot two rounds of 68 over the weekend, after opening with a 78, to finish as the leading European in joint sixth on his Masters debut.
14 - Years since a European player won the Masters. Jose Maria Olazabal was the last to taste success in 1999.
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