On a day with comparatively benign conditions that produced something resembling Masters golf, the back-nine charge we were all expecting finally came.
Birdie. Birdie. Par. Birdie. Game over.
So far, so good. But here’s where it gets really interesting because someone messed with the script. Big time.
The culprit was one Zach Johnson, your 2007 Masters champion. Mr. Final-Round-69, Lay-Up-On-The-Par-Fives, Come-From-Behind, Snatch-It-Away-From-Tiger Johnson.
Why not Zach Johnson in a Masters that was, to borrow a phrase from Jim Nantz, unlike any other? (Wait a minute! Was that Tiger hitting a desperate second shot into the water on 15? That’s the other guys’ role!)
Zach Johnson has officially replaced Chris DiMarco as the golf poster child for gritty overachiever. Today it earned him a green jacket.
The Armchair Golfer
Although anyone who qualifies for the Masters certainly has the ability to win it, I didn’t see this winner coming. He simply outplayed the competition, something Tiger normally does.
I applaud Mr. Johnson’s tenacity during the competition and his humility afterwards.
I haven’t spoken with anyone that didn’t enjoy the heck out of this year’s Masters.