I mean, congrats to Danny Willett and all for winning the 2016 Masters, but what a kick in the crotch for Spieth to lose that way.
If you weren't following it, Jordan Spieth, last year's Champion, had led 7 consecutive rounds at the Masters, something completely unheard of. He was cruising with a five shot lead at the corner when his world fell apart.
Bogies at 10 and 11 narrowed cut his lead down a bit but he still had enough lead and had rebounded from bad holes previously in the four days. But he hit a wretched shot at the par 3 12th that came up way short, hit the bank and rolled into the creek in front of the green. Instead of going to the drop zone, Spieth decided to drop in the fairway in line with where his ball had crossed the hazard and replay.
The chunk he hit there reminded me of that scene in Caddyshack where the huge clump of sod goes flying after Chevy Chase's character goes to pieces. CBS had a camera guy close behind him and they got a slo-mo shot of his swing. ugh He hit so far behind that ball it barely carried 50 yards and plunked into the center of the creek.
His subsequent shot flew way over the green and into a bunker and that was pretty much it for the likeable 22 year old.
I felt bad watching him play that last hole, knowing he had lost what was basically a gimme tournament. You could see the life sucked out of him, and I'm pretty sure at one point he was crying a bit. None of the announcers mentioned it, but I was thinking at the time 22 years old . . . he's still only a kid, you know? You just want to put your arms around him and tell him it's gonna be okay.
brutal
I didn't watch the entire jacket scene in Butler's Cabin afterward. Spieth still looked on the verge of tears. I hope he held it together for the ceremony.
Other than that, I was happy Bryson DeChambeau got low amateur though it wasn't much of a challenge. He was in the final pairing with Spieth on Friday but had one of the ugliest tee shots ever on the 18th that knocked him out of contention.
DeChambeau, a physics major in college, is using an old trick to be more consistant with his irons. All his irons are at 6-iron shaft length, and he uses non-standard lofts and thicker grips to get the usual length off his unique clubs.
Kinda neat, I think.
He's the reigning U.S Amatuer and Collegiate Champion, something guys like Tiger and Phil were before turning pro, so the kid's no slouch. Hopefully he'll do well in the pros (he's turning pro after the Masters).
So, congrats again to Willett and I hope Spieth can shake this brutal loss off. He seems like a nice kid. And the sport needs a bunch of young turks to move it forward.
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