Masters 2012 Leaderboard: Recapping All the Action from Final Round
Sunday was one of the most memorable days in Masters history. All that was missing was Tiger Woods.
Despite the superstar’s absence from the leaderboard, Sunday was still one of the wildest days golf has seen in a long time.
Bubba Watson won the green jacket on the second hole of a playoff that marked the 13th different player to win a major in the last 13 events.
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After 72 holes of golf, Watson and Louis Oosthuizen found themselves all knotted up at 10 under. That’s when the drama really began. After a sloppy first playoff hole and a horrendous tee shot on the second, Watson hit one of the greatest pressure shots in the history of the tournament to not only get out of the trees, but onto the green.
After that, it was just a formality.
But that was only one of the highlights of an incredible day of golf.
Do you know what an albatross is? It’s when you notch a three-under on one hole; that’s exactly what Oosthuizen did on the par-five, 575-yard second hole. It has only occurred four times in Masters history and it vaulted him from third place to the top of the leaderboard. It was one of the greatest shots of all time and will forever be remembered when talking about the 2012 Masters.
That wasn’t the only incredible shot either. Bo Van Pelt shot a bogey-free eight-under on Sunday, including a hole-in-one on No. 16. The finesse and spin placed on the ball was jaw-dropping, as it really did seem like the perfect shot. His 64 was one shot off the course record of 63 set by Nick Price (1986) and Greg Norman (1996).
Just a few minutes later, Adam Scott stepped to the tee on the same hole and had the same result. It was an incredible stretch of events and a reminder of why golf can be so exciting.
We will also remember this Masters for the disappointments of Woods and Rory McIlroy.
Woods didn’t register a single round at par or better, as he struggled mightily with his putter and was rather inconsistent with the driver. He finished the tournament five over, marking his worst performance ever at Augusta National.
McIlroy also finished tied for 40th at five over, as he completely fell apart on Saturday. On the front nine, McIlroy put up a six-over, a mark not even the 22-year-old phenom could overcome as he shot a lackluster 76 on Sunday.
The other big name of the tour lingered in the background, but was never able to get over the hump. Phil Mickelson shot a six-under 66 on Saturday to propel himself into the top five entering Sunday. Unfortunately for Lefty, he wasn’t able to rekindle the magic on Sunday, only mustering a 72 on the day.
Playing relatively error-free golf for the day, it was a triple bogey on No. 4 that really put him behind the eight ball. From there he was playing catch-up and the deficit ultimately was too much to overcome, as he finished tied for third.
It was a day with plenty of highs and lows, with Watson capping off the weekend with a bang.
While you may not agree with some of the policies of Augusta, you can’t argue with the sheer beauty and allure of the course.
This is the premier event in golf for a reason, and Sunday lived up to the sky-high expectations we all had.
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