Monday, April 6, 2009

Tiger Woods' greatest Masters moments

At 8, when many of us were still lining up toy cars, Tiger Woods made his first hole-in-one.
Woods has yet to register an ace in 14 official starts at the Masters. Yet it's not as if he has struggled to produce memorable moments at Augusta National.

A look back at his five greatest:

The Chip Heard 'Round Augusta (2005): Woods' tee shot on the 16th hole of the final round left him in such an awkward spot, he had to aim 20 feet left of the pin and pray for the forces of gravity.

Woods' chip, fueled by a hill in the green, began rolling toward the cup. As if Nike had choreographed it, the ball momentarily froze, allowing for a close-up of the Swoosh. Then, Woods joked, "an earthquake happened.

"The ball's final revolution led to raucous cheers and awkward high fives between Woods and caddie Steve Williams.

"Oh my goodness!" CBS' Verne Lundquist screamed. "In your life have you seen anything like that?!

"The Perfect Ending (1997): Woods could have 13-putted the final green and still become the youngest-ever Masters champion. But by rolling in a testy 4-footer to cap a scrambling par, Woods posted the Masters' lowest score (270) and completed 72 holes without a three-putt.
Hug it out (1997): Woods shot a 40 on his opening nine. But rounds of 70-66-65 made Sunday more of a coronation than a competition. Woods' Sunday gallery contained two prominent members: Lee Elder, the first African-American to compete in the Masters (1975); and Woods' father and mentor, Earl.

After Woods holed out on the 72nd hole, he and Earl locked in a long, emotional bear hug. President Clinton called it the "best shot" he had seen all week.

The Final Dagger (2005): So juiced by his chip-in on No. 16, Woods bogeyed the 17th and 18th to finish in a tie with Chris DiMarco. But Woods claimed his fourth Green Jacket by draining a 15-foot birdie on the first playoff hole.

Fore? Four! (2001): Woods' second title featured few "Did you see that?" moments, but it hardly lacked in significance. By closing with a 68, Woods captured the "Tiger Slam"--becoming the first player to hold all four professional majors at once. Masters chairman Hootie Johnson called it "the greatest achievement in modern-day golf."

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