Adam Scott
The Feel-Good Story
Adam Scott has been close before at Augusta, leading the 2011 Masters on the penultimate hole until being run over by an avalanche of birdies that was unprecedented in Masters history. With that, what looked like being Scott’s Green Jacket was draped instead over the shoulders of South African Charl Schwartzel.
Scott, as always, took the disappointment of missing out on his first major with the grace and poise that we have come to expect of the Australian in over a dozen years as a professional.
However, Scott suffered a vastly more agonising loss to another South African, the veteran Ernie Els in the 2012 Open Championship at Royal Lytham. Scott was again leading on the second to last hole of the tournament only to succumb with late bogies to allow Els to secure his second Claret Jug.
From a ball striking perspective, there are few who can match the Australian and he has taken his game to another level in recent years after switching to a long putter. He has wielded this most controversial of clubs in fine fashion since his slump-ending performance at the Australian Open in 2009.
If the putts drop at Augusta National as they were in 2011, I’m sure there won’t be anyone who would begrudge him victory after these heartbreakingly close shaves, long putter or not.
