The Aussie Who Couldn't Putt, Did

The Aussie who couldn't putt, did. Adam Scott emerged victorious in the 77th Masters Tournament in the most implausible of ways. First, he used the soon-to-be illegal broomstick method to roll in a 20-footer at the 72nd hole. Then, during the second playoff hole against Angel Cabrera, Scott successfully made a curling 15-footer, securing himself as the first Australian winner of the tournament.

It was only last summer when it seemed as though Adam Scott was assured a win in the British Open. But for reasons he could not explain, he missed a short putt, and then another, resulting in a loss in the Open to Ernie Els. He came to golf as a tall, lean and handsome prodigy, essentially acting as the successor to Norman. Even now he is only 32 years old, an international star who has won 16 times on the PGA and European Tours. And yet in the major championships, his reach would always exceed his grasp.

After pars at the first playoff hole, Cabrera and Scott came to the 10th green, despite the the dark, rainy conditions. It was so dark, Scott said, that he didn't trust his read of the line on his 15-footer. He asked caddie Steve Williams to look at it.

"Is it a cup?" Scott asked.
"At least two cups," Williams said.

Sure enough, Adam Scott made the shot, and it had now come to an end. Scott remember the words Cabrera said to him during times of discouragement: "He told me, 'You're a great, great player.'"

Everyone knows it now, even Adam Scott.