Tiger Woods: Masters Champ
This past Sunday, April 14, golf fans around the world gathered to watch the Masters Tournament at Augusta National Golf Club. The Masters is one of four major tournaments throughout the year on the PGA Tour, and is perhaps the most significant. Many golf fans consider it to be equivalent to the Super Bowl in importance. However, this year’s Masters was incredibly special as it marked the triumphant return of one of the greatest, if not the greatest, golfer of all time, Tiger Woods, to the winner’s circle of a PGA Tour major.
At the beginning of Woods’ career, he was an unstoppable force in every event he competed. He first won the Masters at the young age of 21, in 1997. This is an incredible feat considering most players on tour never win a major throughout their entire career. Since then, he went on to win 80 tournaments on tour including 14. But after 11 years of not winning a major, and 14 years of not winning at the Masters, Tiger Woods claimed his 15th major win, fifth Masters win and 81st tournament win on the PGA Tour.
Entering the fourth and final round of the Masters on Sunday, Tiger Woods began the day at 11 under par in the tournament tied for second place. He trailed Francesco Molinari by 2 strokes, so he had his work cut out for him. Fans were skeptical of Woods, but hopeful about his chances to win, since he had never won a major in the past without starting the day in the lead. Through Woods’ patience and determination throughout the day, he bested the field at a score of 13 under par, 275, beating the runner up by 1 stroke.
With Woods back on top, people are once again speculating when and if he can still break the records set by Sam Snead and Jack Nicklaus. Sam Snead holds the record for the most tournament wins in PGA Tour history with 82 tournaments. Woods currently has 81 wins. Jack Nicklaus holds the record for the most major tournament wins on the PGA Tour with 18 wins. Woods currently has 15 wins. Snead’s record seems like the most realistic goal right now, but many fans are hopeful Woods will break both. This win at the 2019 Masters could mark the start of Woods returning to his place on top of the PGA Tour!