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We can file Dustin Johnson’s post-victory interview Sunday with CBS’s Amanda Balionis along with so many other moments 2020 has given us. It was unexpected, it was real and it brought emotions to the fore.
It also served as an appropriate capper for a unique and momentous Masters week at Augusta National. The No. 1 player in the world took control on Saturday, steadied himself after an early wobble on Sunday and claimed his green jacket with the lowest winning score in the history of the tournament.
After the week of golf that Johnson put on display, Ron Green Jr. writes, not many words were needed. On this occasion, Johnson erased his history of not delivering after a 54-hole lead in a major.
As runner-up performances go, Cameron Smith’s was historic. He and Sungjae Im tied at 15-under par for the lowest non-winning score in tournament history. And Smith outdid even Johnson in becoming the first player to post four sub-70 scores in one Masters.
Before play began, Bryson DeChambeau was the player everyone spoke about with curious anticipation. The young bomber’s plans to overpower Augusta National did not come to fruition, however, his T34 finish the result of a dizzying mix of factors.
Rory McIlroy rallied. Lee Westwood persevered. Tommy Fleetwood learned. As Lewine Mair notes, they distinguished themselves during a most unusual Masters Tournament at which most everyone rose to the occasion.
It was seven years ago that Adam Scott claimed his green jacket and sent tremors through all of golf-watching Australia. As Charles Happell relates, the moment remains among the greatest in the sporting history of the commonwealth.
For amateurs John Augenstein and Andy Ogletree, the wait for a November Masters came with complications. As Sean Fairholm writes, they still made the most of their opportunities.
Yes, Bernhard Langer became the oldest player to make the cut at a Masters, a feat that was helped along by the adapted calendar of 2020. As Scott Michaux reports, Langer plans to keep at it when April rolls around.
Amid all else going on at Augusta National, the club also announced initiatives to honor Lee Elder and to aid nearby Paine College and the city of Augusta. Chairman Fred Ridley said social unrest during the summer helped shape the thinking that led to the changes.
For 2008 Masters champion Trevor Immelman, this year brought a transition from competitor to commentator. While this might not have been Immelman’s original plan, Michael Vlismas tells us he is making the most of his TV opportunity.
And in this week’s installment of the Divot, Lewine Mair assesses DeChambeau’s big-swinging approach and wonders if he’s missing out on a simple pleasure of the game that is available to so many of the rest of us.
Sam Dolson
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