Opinion & Analysis
Tiger Woods’ victory was great, but was it really the best Masters win in the past 15 years?
After this year’s Masters, Jim Nantz proudly stated “It’s the best event I’ve ever covered. And I feel very fortunate to have been in that spot.” Now the hype train has slowed down a touch, we can look at this recent Masters and ask was it the best in the last 15 years?
We all know the Masters doesn’t start till the back nine Sunday, so I’ve judged the 2005 to 2019 tournaments on the storylines heading into Sunday, the leaderboard at the start of the back nine, and the final result. While doing this I realized two things, Augusta National didn’t really “Tiger Proof” Augusta, because he was around the lead most years, and we have been spoiled with some pretty exciting Sundays since Tiger’s last win in 2005.
15. 2008: Trevor Immelman (280)
No offense to Trevor, who has one of the best swings in recent years, but this Masters was very dull. Trev started the day with a two-shot lead over Steve Flesch and Brandt Snedeker, and by the 14th he had a five-shot lead. No one really made a run at the eventual champion, and he played solid, not spectacular, golf over the final day to close out a three-shot victory over Tiger.
14. 2014: Bubba Watson (280)
The start of the day saw Bubba and Spieth in the lead at 5 under, with Blixt, Fowler, and Kuchar tied for second. What started as a day with promise didn’t eventuate to much, and by the start of the back nine, it was a two-horse race between Spieth and Watson. While it was exciting to see our young hero Speith try to win his first Masters, both he and Watson pared the last five holes to give Watson a three-shot win.
13. 2007: Zach Johnson (289)
An interesting Masters if you’re a fan of meteorology as it was unseasonably cold and windy all week, but unfortunately had an unclimactic finish. Stuart Appleby started the day with the lead and hopes of becoming Australia’s first Masters champion, but by the start of the back nine Zach Johnson, Rory Sabbatini, and Appelby were one back of Retief Goosen, with Tiger lurking. Sadly for the viewers at home, Zach was the only player in contention to play the back nine under par and took the victory. You have to respect his clutch play and ability to score, but in the end, it wasn’t the close finish we were hoping for.
12. 2006: Phil Mickelson (281)
In a year where the course played quite tough, the final round started with Phil and Fred Couples in tied at 4 under. Phil played solid in the final round and cruised to victory over Tim Clark, Chad Campbell, Couples, Goosen, and Woods. While it was nice to see Phil get his third major, no one made a charge and it resulted in a mundane year.
11. 2018: Patrick Reed (273)
After playing great golf all week, Reed started the final round with a three-shot lead over Rory McIlroy. Rory had his chances early but failed to capitalize, and by the turn, Reed had a four-shot lead over Rory, Fowler, Spieth, and Rahm. While Spieth and Fowler made an improbable late charge, Reed played solid golf and held on for the win. It was an impressive effort, but Reed’s victory will forever be marred by the awkward applause from the patrons.
10. 2016: Danny Willett (283)
A Sunday morning leader board that consisted of Spieth, Smylie Kaufman, Bernhard Langer, and Hideki Matsuyama. Everyone was excited to watch Jordan go back to back, and when he made the turn with a five shot lead it looked likely. However, after a cringe-worthy bogey, bogey, quad start the back nine he found himself was one behind Willet. The Englishman held onto the lead to capture his first major in what was a stunning final round. Sadly, for Willett, this Masters will be remembered for Jordan’s capitulation, and not his bogey-free 67 that lead to a three-shot win. All in all, a weird and interesting Sunday at Masters.
9. 2015: Jordan Spieth (270)
After an uninspired Champions Dinner of traditional caesar, grilled chicken breast, green beans, mashed potatoes, corn, macaroni and cheese, and dessert of confetti cake and vanilla ice cream, it was little surprise to see only two past champions in the top 10 heading into the final day. The main storyline for Sunday was whether Jordan was going to break the 18 under tournament record as he held a comfortable four-shot lead over Justin Rose. Over the front nine, Spieth had a few bogeys but over the back nine firmly regained the lead and ended up winning by four. Although no one really challenged for the title, it was a stacked leaderboard and was great to see Jordan get his first major and tie the tournament scoring record.
8. 2010: Phil Michelson (272)
Lee Westwood and Phil were in the final group on Sunday with Tiger a few shots back. A lot of golf fans were hoping that Lee could snag his first major and at the start of the back nine it was, Lee (-11), KJ Choi (-12) and Mickelson (-12) battling it out. The back nine was exciting with birdies and eagles and a 64 from Anthony Kim, but this Masters will always be remembered for the shot from the pine straw on 13 by Lefty. It helped him keep momentum and he ended up winning his third green jacket by three shots.
7. 2009: Angel Cabrera (276)
I feel bad for putting this win here, but outside of the year-round golf fan, the 2009 Masters didn’t spark much interest. However, if the same storyline was carried out by big-name players it would’ve made the top four. The round started with Angel and Kenny Perry tied for the lead with Chad Campbell two back. By the 10th Perry had a one-shot lead over Campbell and a charging Mickelson. As Mickelson failed to make up any more ground, Perry took a two shot leading with two holes to play. Everyone at home was thinking “OMG Kenny Perry is going to win the Masters!!??”. However, two closing bogeys lead to a Campbell, Perry, Cabrera playoff. With a gutsy up and down on the first playoff hole, Cabrera managed to make par and head to the second playoff hole with Perry. Here Cabrera made a routine par and captured his second major in the process.
6. 2017: Sergio (279)
After a week of solid golf, Sergio entered the final round tied with Justin Rose at 6 under, with several quality players within a few shots of the lead. Most fans were hoping it would finally be Sergio’s first major. But could he do it on his 74th attempt? Over the front nine, the two overnight leaders separated themselves from the pack by going out in 34. Starting the back nine, Sergio’s bogeys at 10 and 11 gifted rose a two-shot lead. This lead would last to the 15th hole where Sergio made an awe-inspiring eagle and Rose birdied for the pair to be tied at 9 under. On the 16th, Rose made a clutch birdie to take firm control of the tournament. But Rose’s weak bogey on 17, followed by him and Sergio making pars on 18, sent the tournament into extra holes. Sergio made birdie on the first playoff hole, handing the Spaniard his first major on what would’ve been Seve Ballesteros’ 60th birthday.
5. 2013: Adam Scott (279)
For some people, fifth might be a bit too generous ranking for 2013, but as an Australian, it was hard to not put this near the top. Angel Cabrera and Brandt Snedeker were in the final group Sunday with three Australians Day, Scott, and Leishman just off the lead. By the time the final group made the turn, Cabrera held a two-shot lead and looked well on his way to a second green jacket. But the back nine had some interesting moments, as Scott and Day made some birdies and Angel stubbled. When Adam rolled in a 25-foot bomb on the 72nd hole the tournament appeared over, until moments later when Angel hit a clutch wedge to three feet to tie. The playoff ended with Scott birding the second hole, giving Australia their first Master’s title.
4. 2012: Bubba Watson (278)
The 2012 Masters Sunday will be remembered by two incredible shots, but it started off with little know Swede Peter Hanson holding a one-shot lead over Phil Mickelson, with Oosthuizen and Watson a few back. The front nine was one of the more exciting in recent years with Oosthuizen gaining the lead with an albatross on the second hole. By the time the leaders made it to Amen Corner, there were five players within three shots of the lead still held by Oosthuizen. In the end, it came down to a three-player race between Oosthuizen, Bubba Watson, and Matt Kuchar. When Kuchar eagled 15, he temporarily tied Oosthuizen at 9 under but fell away with a bogey on 16th hole. Watson made four consecutive birdies and Oosthuizen made one more for the pair to be tied at 10 under through 72 holes. In the playoff, Watson and Oosthuizen made regulation pars on the 18th after narrowly missing their birdie putts. On the next, Oosthuizen hit the fairway while Bubba missed way right in the trees. We all thought Bubba was done until he managed to sling hook a wedge to 10 feet, and after Oosthuizen made a weak bogey, Bubba had his first major.
3. 2005: Tiger Woods (276)
After an exciting third round played over Saturday and Sunday morning, Tiger would hold a three-shot lead going into the final round paired with Chris DiMarco. After his 65 in the third round, which included seven straight birdies, Tiger looked like a sure thing to capture his fourth green jacket, and this was punctuated by a birdie, birdie start. After a week of great golf, barring the back nine in the third round, DiMarco played solid golf over the front nine, and made the turn three shots behind Tiger. After Tiger struggled through Amen Corner, his lead was down to one as the pair stood on the 16th tee. DiMarco had the honor and hit a great shot below the hole, while Tiger pulled his tee shot left leaving his ball in an extremely difficult situation. What looked like a two-shot swing in Dimarco’s favor quickly evaporated, as Tiger holed his chip for birdie, in what some think is his greatest shot ever. The disappointing part of this Masters was Tiger’s bogey, bogey finish to force a playoff, and if DiMarco’s chip on the last hadn’t lipped out we could’ve had a different champion.
On the first hole of the playoff, Tiger made a 15ft putt to seal the victory and his ninth major title.
2. 2011: Charl Schwartzel (274)
After playing flawless golf all week, Rory McIlroy looked set to comfortably win his first major, but his four-shot lead at the start of Sunday’s round was cut short with a bogey at the first. The front nine had its moments with Schwartzel’s eagle on three, Tiger’s front-nine 31, and numerous players hanging around the lead. After Rory made triple on the 10th, Tiger, Schwartzel, Cabrera, and Scott were tied. Over the back nine, eight different golfers looked like they might win the event. Schwartzel eventually made four birdies in a row to pull away from the pack and beat Day and Scott by two shots. In an afternoon where the cameras struggled to capture every meaningful shot, it truly was an exciting Masters, but it didn’t have the potential playoff or champion many were hoping for.
1. 2019: Tiger Woods (275)
I originally started writing this article thinking 2011 was better, but when you look at the altering leaderboard on the back-nine, the eventual champion, and the mix of new and ‘old’ generation golfers, this was the best Masters in the last 15 years.
With the treats of thunderstorms in the area, tee times were moved up Sunday and the players went out in groups of three. Francesco Molinari held the lead at the start of the day, and had control of the tournament until he made a double bogey at the 12th. Tiger, who was paired with Molinari, gained a share of the lead after a regulation par on the 12th, which left patrons and tv audiences around the world buzzing with the possibilities of Tiger’s Cinderella story. Over the final stretch, DJ, Koepka, Schauffele, Cantlay, Fowler, Rahm, Watson, Finau, Simpson, and Day, all made runs at the lead but were unable to top Tiger, who birdied 13, 15, and 16 to take control of the tournament. I will forgive a “weak” but controlled bogey on the last to see the GOAT collect his 15th major. The fist pump, the tour sauce quality of the family embrace, and the walk to clubhouse left few dry eyes in the house.
As the editor-in-chief of this website and an observer of the GolfWRX forums and other online golf equipment discourse for over a decade, I’m pretty well attuned to the grunts and grumbles of a significant portion of the golf equipment purchasing spectrum. And before you accuse me of lording above all in some digital ivory tower, I’d like to offer that I worked at golf courses (public and private) for years prior to picking up my pen, so I’m well-versed in the non-degenerate golf equipment consumers out there. I touched (green)grass (retail)!
Complaints about the ills of and related to the OEMs usually follow some version of: Product cycles are too short for real innovation, tour equipment isn’t the same as retail (which is largely not true, by the way), too much is invested in marketing and not enough in R&D, top staffer X hasn’t even put the new driver in play, so it’s obviously not superior to the previous generation, prices are too high, and on and on.
Without digging into the merits of any of these claims, which I believe are mostly red herrings, I’d like to bring into view of our rangefinder what I believe to be the two primary difficulties golf equipment companies face.
One: As Terry Koehler, back when he was the CEO of Ben Hogan, told me at the time of the Ft Worth irons launch, if you can’t regularly hit the golf ball in a coin-sized area in the middle of the face, there’s not a ton that iron technology can do for you. Now, this is less true now with respect to irons than when he said it, and is less and less true by degrees as the clubs get larger (utilities, fairways, hybrids, drivers), but there remains a great deal of golf equipment truth in that statement. Think about it — which is to say, in TL;DR fashion, get lessons from a qualified instructor who will teach you about the fundamentals of repeatable impact and how the golf swing works, not just offer band-aid fixes. If you can’t repeatably deliver the golf club to the golf ball in something resembling the manner it was designed for, how can you expect to be getting the most out of the club — put another way, the maximum value from your investment?
Similarly, game improvement equipment can only improve your game if you game it. In other words, get fit for the clubs you ought to be playing rather than filling the bag with the ones you wish you could hit or used to be able to hit. Of course, don’t do this if you don’t care about performance and just want to hit a forged blade while playing off an 18 handicap. That’s absolutely fine. There were plenty of members in clubs back in the day playing Hogan Apex or Mizuno MP-32 irons who had no business doing so from a ballstriking standpoint, but they enjoyed their look, feel, and complementary qualities to their Gatsby hats and cashmere sweaters. Do what brings you a measure of joy in this maddening game.
Now, the second issue. This is not a plea for non-conforming equipment; rather, it is a statement of fact. USGA/R&A limits on every facet of golf equipment are detrimental to golf equipment manufacturers. Sure, you know this, but do you think about it as it applies to almost every element of equipment? A 500cc driver would be inherently more forgiving than a 460cc, as one with a COR measurement in excess of 0.83. 50-inch shafts. Box grooves. And on and on.
Would fewer regulations be objectively bad for the game? Would this erode its soul? Fortunately, that’s beside the point of this exercise, which is merely to point out the facts. The fact, in this case, is that equipment restrictions and regulations are the slaughterbench of an abundance of innovation in the golf equipment space. Is this for the best? Well, now I’ve asked the question twice and might as well give a partial response, I guess my answer to that would be, “It depends on what type of golf you’re playing and who you’re playing it with.”
For my part, I don’t mind embarrassing myself with vintage blades and persimmons chasing after the quasi-spiritual elevation of a well-struck shot, but that’s just me. Plenty of folks don’t give a damn if their grooves are conforming. Plenty of folks think the folks in Liberty Corner ought to add a prison to the museum for such offences. And those are just a few of the considerations for the amateur game — which doesn’t get inside the gallery ropes of the pro game…
Different strokes in the game of golf, in my humble opinion.
Anyway, I believe equipment company engineers are genuinely trying to build better equipment year over year. The marketing departments are trying to find ways to make this equipment appeal to the broadest segment of the golf market possible. All of this against (1) the backdrop of — at least for now — firm product cycles. And golfers who, with their ~15 average handicap (men), for the most part, are not striping the golf ball like Tiger in his prime and seem to have less and less time year over year to practice and improve. (2) Regulations that massively restrict what they’re able to do…
That’s the landscape as I see it and the real headwinds for golf equipment companies. No doubt, there’s more I haven’t considered, but I think the previous is a better — and better faith — point of departure when formulating any serious commentary on the golf equipment world than some of the more cynical and conspiratorial takes I hear.
Agree? Disagree? Think I’m worthy of an Adam Hadwin-esque security guard tackle? Let me know in the comments.
@golfoncbs The infamous Adam Hadwin tackle ? #golf #fyp #canada #pgatour #adamhadwin ? Ghibli-style nostalgic waltz – MaSssuguMusic
Episode #16 brings us Cliff McKinney. Cliff is the founder of Old Charlie Golf Club, a new club, and concept, to be built in the Florida panhandle. The model is quite interesting and aims to make great, private golf more affordable. We hope you enjoy the show!
Last week, I came across a reel from BBC Sport on Instagram featuring Scottie Scheffler speaking to the media ahead of The Open at Royal Portrush. In it, he shared that he often wonders what the point is of wanting to win tournaments so badly — especially when he knows, deep down, that it doesn’t lead to a truly fulfilling life.
View this post on Instagram
“Is it great to be able to win tournaments and to accomplish the things I have in the game of golf? Yeah, it brings tears to my eyes just to think about it because I’ve literally worked my entire life to be good at this sport,” Scheffler said. “To have that kind of sense of accomplishment, I think, is a pretty cool feeling. To get to live out your dreams is very special, but at the end of the day, I’m not out here to inspire the next generation of golfers. I’m not out here to inspire someone to be the best player in the world, because what’s the point?”
Ironically — or perhaps perfectly — he went on to win the claret jug.
That question — what’s the point of winning? — cuts straight to the heart of the human journey.
As someone who’s spent over two decades in the trenches of professional golf, and in deep study of the mental, emotional, and spiritual dimensions of the game, I see Scottie’s inner conflict as a sign of soul evolution in motion.
I came to golf late. I wasn’t a junior standout or college All-American. At 27, I left a steady corporate job to see if I could be on the PGA Tour starting as a 14-handicap, average-length hitter. Over the years, my journey has been defined less by trophies and more by the relentless effort to navigate the deeply inequitable and gated system of professional golf — an effort that ultimately turned inward and helped me evolve as both a golfer and a person.
One perspective that helped me make sense of this inner dissonance around competition and our culture’s tendency to overvalue winning is the idea of soul evolution.
The University of Virginia’s Division of Perceptual Studies has done extensive research on reincarnation, and Netflix’s Surviving Death (Episode 6) explores the topic, too. Whether you take it literally or metaphorically, the idea that we’re on a long arc of growth — from beginner to sage elder — offers a profound perspective.
If you accept the premise literally, then terms like “young soul” and “old soul” start to hold meaning. However, even if we set the word “soul” aside, it’s easy to see that different levels of life experience produce different worldviews.
Newer souls — or people in earlier stages of their development — may be curious and kind but still lack discernment or depth. There is a naivety, and they don’t yet question as deeply, tending to see things in black and white, partly because certainty feels safer than confronting the unknown.
As we gain more experience, we begin to experiment. We test limits. We chase extreme external goals — sometimes at the expense of health, relationships, or inner peace — still operating from hunger, ambition, and the fragility of the ego.
It’s a necessary stage, but often a turbulent and unfulfilling one.
David Duval fell off the map after reaching World No. 1. Bubba Watson had his own “Is this it?” moment with his caddie, Ted Scott, after winning the Masters.
In Aaron Rodgers: Enigma, reflecting on his 2011 Super Bowl win, Rodgers said:
“Now I’ve accomplished the only thing that I really, really wanted to do in my life. Now what? I was like, ‘Did I aim at the wrong thing? Did I spend too much time thinking about stuff that ultimately doesn’t give you true happiness?’”
Jim Carrey once said, “I think everybody should get rich and famous and do everything they ever dreamed of so they can see that it’s not the answer.”
Eventually, though, something shifts.
We begin to see in shades of gray. Winning, dominating, accumulating—these pursuits lose their shine. The rewards feel more fleeting. Living in a constant state of fight-or-flight makes us feel alive, yes, but not happy and joyful.
Compassion begins to replace ambition. Love, presence, and gratitude become more fulfilling than status, profits, or trophies. We crave balance over burnout. Collaboration over competition. Meaning over metrics.
Interestingly, if we zoom out, we can apply this same model to nations and cultures. Countries, like people, have a collective “soul stage” made up of the individuals within them.
Take the United States, for example. I’d place it as a mid-level soul: highly competitive and deeply driven, but still learning emotional maturity. Still uncomfortable with nuance. Still believing that more is always better. Despite its global wins, the U.S. currently ranks just 23rd in happiness (as of 2025). You might liken it to a gifted teenager—bold, eager, and ambitious, but angsty and still figuring out how to live well and in balance. As much as a parent wants to protect their child, sometimes the child has to make their own mistakes to truly grow.
So when Scottie Scheffler wonders what the point of winning is, I don’t see someone losing strength.
I see someone evolving.
He’s beginning to look beyond the leaderboard. Beyond metrics of success that carry a lower vibration. And yet, in a poetic twist, Scheffler did go on to win The Open. But that only reinforces the point: even at the pinnacle, the question remains. And if more of us in the golf and sports world — and in U.S. culture at large — started asking similar questions, we might discover that the more meaningful trophy isn’t about accumulating or beating others at all costs.
It’s about awakening and evolving to something more than winning could ever promise.
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Geoffrey Holland
May 11, 2019 at 9:45 pm
Aside from the content of this article, the editing, spelling, and use of English is pathetic. You even misspelled Mickelson at one point!
Cabrera ‘stubbled’?
Have you not heard of proofreading? This is a pathetic attempt at writing. Do better.
Barry
May 11, 2019 at 5:44 pm
My reaction to this article: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ilcRS5eUpwk
James….seriously. Please tell me you were drunk, high or both when writing this article.
Your #2 pick (Charl Schwartzel, 2011) is easily bottom 3. Totally forgettable, except for the trainwreck was Rory that day. A great tournament is WON, not lost. You probably loved the 1996 Faldo victory too.
Also, you cannot rank Patrick Reed winning anything low enough (that was #99 out of 15), and Phil’s 2006 needs to be way higher (as does El Pato’s 2009).
Please seek professional help.