Archives for April 2010

Phil Mickelson is the man Tiger Woods vowed to become.

Mickelson proved that you can be a class act and still win. The contrast between the pair could not be more stark.

Woods, emerging from a self-imposed break following his sex scandal, said at the beginning of the week that he would mend his ways. That he would be more aware of those around him, that he would treat the game with more respect. If wins came along, fine, but they would be irrelevant if he was not a better man. The jury is still out as to whether he has begun to change for the better.

But Mickelson is the total package. A family man, loved by fans for genuinely engaging with them, a brilliant player, an accomplished winner.

Read the rest of this entry

You'll find them at every tournament, standing behind their man on the range.

In the pecking order, they vie for top-dog status with the expensively trousered agent.

But while the manager looks good and is handy on the phone, the coach is imbued with deeper knowledge which gives him a special aura.

One coach who has achieved guru-like status is Pete Cowen. His man Lee Westwood is leading the Masters going into the final round so he clearly knows a thing or two.

Read the rest of this entry

Electricity crackled and fizzed around Augusta on Saturday as the magic of the Masters returned with a roar.

Make that multiple roars, as Phil Mickelson sparked a scintillating spell of golf that had fans shaking their heads in disbelief.

Mickelson ignited the fireworks with an eagle at the par-five 13th and stoked the fire further by holing his second shot to the 14th for back-to-back eagles - for only the third time in Masters history. He nearly added a third at the very next hole as patrons went into delirium.

Read the rest of this entry

White boiler suit, green cap, golf bag over the shoulder? One of the most recognisable sights in golf is the Augusta caddie.

In the old days players used a local man, but nowadays they bring their own trusted lieutenant. But what's the Masters like for a 'looper'?

On Friday evening I caught up with Graeme McDowell's bagman Ken Comboy to find out about his day. Disappointing, mainly, as they had just missed the cut.

But Ken's a good man and he slumped down for a chat in the shade of the Augusta National clubhouse.

Read the rest of this entry

They say overnight success can take 10-20 years. The line could have been invented for Lee Westwood.

But it applies to English golf in general, still searching for a first major winner for 14 years since Nick Faldo was supposed to have inspired a generation.

Major success may be taking its time coming, but with three Englishmen in the world's top 10, and two of those - Westwood and Ian Poulter - leading the Masters at halfway, relative success is already here.

Read the rest of this entry

The Tiger Woods saga is a bit like wrestling an octopus. Just when you think it's under control it comes at you from another angle.

Woods seemed to have made steps to enter a new phase in his life after Monday's positive news conference. But then came the stern and quite surprising lecture from Augusta chairman Billy Payne on the eve of the Masters. It didn't end there, though.

The opening day dawned with news that Woods had filmed a controversial new advert for his sponsors using his late father's voice, essentially trading on his indiscretions.

And now this.

Read the rest of this entry

He may not have won the Masters in his career, but BBC commentator Ken Brown may just have set a new course record at Augusta.

The former Ryder Cup star could very well stake a claim to be the first man to play football on the hallowed turf of the Augusta National.

Forget bending it like Beckham. Curling it like Ken played to a smattering of bemused patrons as the shadows lengthened on the 13th fairway on the eve of the Masters.

Read the rest of this entry

It's crunch time at Augusta and the moment we ask the top pundits to nail their colours to the Masters mast.

After all the talking, cogitating and waxing lyrical, what we want to know is, who is actually going to win the thing?

Statistics will give you a rough guide, though 67% of those are made up. Going with a hunch is another tried and tested method.

So how do you pick a winner? Well, you can start by reading the views of some of the game's top writers and broadcasters.

Read the rest of this entry

The Masters has an enduring magic that captivates generation after generation. Once hooked, nobody falls out of love with it.

Sure, some final rounds are more exciting than others. But by then, Augusta's allure has guaranteed we'll be back again next year.

And each time the Masters comes around, for every old timer bowing out, or new champion crowned, there's another debutant pulling into Magnolia Lane for the first time with eyes wide open and a thumping heart.

It's the evolution of Masters man, and hopefully it will continue long after we're all gone. What follows are the thoughts of five men at different stages of their Masters careers, ending with the great Jack Nicklaus.

Read the rest of this entry

It was like watching Tiger Woods, but without the front. The strut, the swagger, the arrogance - all gone.

Instead a softly spoken, fairly sheepish man turned up in Woods's golf kit.

At the Masters on Monday, the world number one finally gave his much-awaited first news conference since the revelations of his secret life became public.

Read the rest of this entry

If Augusta's Washington Road is an all-American, neon-lit strip of a rainbow, then the Augusta National Golf Club, hiding just a few hundred yards back behind a tree-lined fence, is the elusive pot of gold.

The world's most iconic course will host the 74th Masters this week amid the buzz generated by the return of the disgraced Tiger Woods. There'll be other stories, too, of course. No man is bigger than the tournament. Only the names change.

But the setting for this slice of golfing heaven couldn't be more ordinary. No out of town rural idyll, this. No meandering approach roads, no gated estates, no buffer zone between the mundane and the magic.

Read the rest of this entry