|
 |
 | | | You are in: Special Events: 2001: US Masters |
|
| |  Monday, 2 April, 2001, 16:29 GMT 17:29 UK Monkey on Monty's back Setting sun: Monty's chances of winning a Major are fading It has become a clich�, but one that still continues to fascinate us all nonetheless. The statement "Colin Montgomerie is the best golfer never to have won a Major" has become a monkey on the Scot's back. But as yet another Major approaches, in this case the US Masters, Monty must accept that the question will be posed yet again - no matter how bored he must be of it. There can be few golf fans in the world, never mind the British Isles, who would not wish to see the 37-year-old exorcise this particular demon.
And if he does, that famous scowl will be replaced by a smile as wide as the Forth Bridge. But the fact remains that the more that one of the big four elude him, the less likely the prospects of him breaking his infamous duck actually are. There are players who have won one, even two Majors that have a fraction of Montgomerie's skill, but instead possess that most vital quality of all - luck. The Scot could be forgiven for casting a rueful glance at the likes of John Daly, Mark Calcavecchia and Steve Elkington, all Major winners, and be forgiven for shaking his head. Major jinx Montgomerie, a seven-time winner of the European Order of Merit, needs to prove to no one that he is among the greatest players of the modern era. No one, that is, except himself. When it comes to Majors, no other golfer burdens themselves with as much pressure as Montgomerie who, for all his near-misses, appears to carry the weight of the world on his shoulders every time he steps to the tee in the States. On several occasions, he has allowed some over-zealous member of the crowd to disturb his concentration and let his game slip as a result. It is no secret either that the energy-sapping heat in which many US Majors are played do not suit a man more accustomed to the howling gales and driving rain of the Scottish links where his game was honed. The US Open was the closest he ever came to breaking his jinx. In 1994, he tied for second with Loren Roberts after being blown away in a play-off with Ernie Els. The South African again proved to be Monty's undoing at Congressional in 1997.
He also lost to Steve Elkington in a play-off for the USPGA championship at the Riviera Country Club in 1995. His best finish at the Masters is a tie for eighth two seasons ago while, at the Open championship, where he has missed the cut five times, a tie for eighth in 1994 is his best showing. Recently, the increasingly consistent Phil Mickelson has emerged as a player of real stature and the dreaded phrase has been applied to him, so at least Monty is no longer alone. But it is cold comfort. "I'm getting a bit sick and tired of it all," said Montgomerie, philosophically, last summer. "There is nothing left for me to prove. The way my career has gone could not have been better and, if I win a Major, great, if I don't, so be it." | |
Top US Masters stories now:  Links to more US Masters stories are at the foot of the page. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|  | | | | | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |
|  E-mail this story to a friend |
| |
| Links to more US Masters stories |
| | | ||
 | ||||
 | | Back to top
| ||
| ------------------------------------------------------------ BBC News >> | BBC Weather >> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- © MMIII | News Sources | Privacy |
