Woods in a class of his own

13 April 2012

Even unsentimental fellow pros had braved the massive throng surrounding the 18th green, sensing that they'd never witness anything again like this in their lifetime.

When Tiger Woods rolled in the 15 footer to seal his unique ownership of all four of golf's major championships simultaneously, they, like everyone here at Augusta, were not asking whether it was their sport's most fantastic achievement. That just went without saying.

No, as Woods was busy taking a call of congratulations from President Bush, the question went wider. Might this just have been the greatest feat in sport, period? The Americans reeled out Joe DiMaggio's 56-game baseball hitting streak, their most revered sporting monument, and David Duval, a ghostly picture of dismay after being outduelled by the young Master once again, reckoned it had to be ranked at least alongside.

Then Woods himself was asked what he thought were sport's landmark performances. He talked about watching Ali on video - doubtless the young Tiger had seen film of his unimaginable triumph over George Foreman - and about Carl Lewis winning gold medals at four consecutive Olympics.

He remembered watching Jack Nicklaus on TV winning here in 1986, almost unthinkably at the age of 46, and recalled how "amazing" his mate "MJ" - Michael Jordan - had been in NBA finals. Yet of his own place in this particular pantheon? Well, as usual, he just left those plaudits for others to dish out. To a man who makes the magnificent sound workaday, winning a second green jacket was just "really neat".

Of course, when he had pulled the peak of his cap over his eyes to hide the welling tears on the side of the 18th green, it was obvious what it really meant to him. He had been completely drained by another compelling Masters finale where the difference between him and two brilliant players, Duval and Phil Mickelson, ultimately proved to be his incredible mental durability and unshakeable concentration.

"I was in the zone," he said, and it meant the others being consigned to their own twilight zone. The terrifying aspect of this triumph for his pursuers was that even though clearly not quite on his A game, Woods always seemed in control, having the nerveless quality to make the big plays at the most critical junctures so that, for all the wonderful drama of a three-way battle, an air of inevitability still pervaded what he called his "grind" to victory.

How he does this, even he doesn't know. "I'm amazed that I was able to play as well as I was able to when I needed to," he mused. Him and everyone else. For even though he made mistakes, the countless critical par-saving chips and putts which constantly kept his nose in front showcased a man immune to pressure and the overbearing sense of expectation.

"You probably think I'm lying but I kid you not, I actually felt relaxed," he said. In contrast, both Duval and Mickelson tightened up fatally in the denouement. Mickelson surrendered with a missed five footer at the 16th and Duval failed with putts of seven, 14 and six foot over the last three holes. The last almost criminal miss, which would have tied the lead with Woods still to play the 18th, proved the defining moment.

Instead, Woods just blasted his tee shot 327 yards down the fairway, pitched to 15ft and holed out to win by two in the grandest manner. He had been worried that his drive had flirted with a tree but smiled that the "golfing gods" must have been looking after him. Yet they always are. Luck, actually, had nothing to do with it.

So, as he sets out to make the Grand Slam debate redundant by now winning them all this season, the rest can only take scant consolation in the thought that it is rare genius which is suffocating them. Could Duval put his friend's achievement into historical perspective? "Well, I don't know. I'm not sure there's anything you could compare it with," he responded. So there you have it. Even his rivals think the man is incomparable.

Woods has surpassed his own world rankings points record following his victory at Augusta. The 25-year-old is the first person in the 15-year history of the rankings to possess more than 1,400 total points and the first to break the 30-point average barrier.

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