The first indication that Tiger Woods was heading in the right direction ahead of the 2012 Masters came in the 2011 Chevron World Challenge.
While the tournament he hosts in December was an unofficial PGA Tour event, it did feature 18 of the best players in the world and a win is a win no matter the status. That’s what he felt after canning his 6-foot putt for birdie on the 72nd hole, a stroke that gave him a one-shot victory over Zach Johnson and a trophy for the first time in 27 worldwide starts spread out over nearly 25 months.
A PGA Tour win, by the looks of things, wasn’t too far away.
It almost came to be for Woods in the fourth start on the PGA Tour in 2012, when he closed with an eye-popping 62 in the Honda Classic but fell two short Rory McIlroy. The next week, doubts popped up about his health again as he withdrew in the final round with an Achilles strain in the World Golf Championships-Cadillac Championship.
2012 Masters: Final leaderboard
Two weeks later, however, he vanquished those doubts with a dominating, 5-shot victory in the Arnold Palmer Invitational. He was back, right? He thought so.
“I certainly am excited about playing and really looking forward to getting out there and playing,” Woods said before the Masters. “I feel like I’m driving the ball much better than I have. I’ve got some heat behind it, and it’s very straight.
“My iron game is improving. Everything is headed in the right direction at the right time.”
But this wasn’t the time. With rounds of 72-75-72-74, he finished at 5-over 293, failed to break par in any round for just the second time as a professional in the Masters, and often got stuck between executing his new swing under his current coach (Sean Foley) and reverting back to his old swing (under Hank Haney).
His tie for 40th is the worst Masters finish as a pro.
After finishing no worse than a tie for sixth in his last seven starts at Augusta National, he was never in contention. He finished his first round with bogeys on the final two holes. He made five more bogeys in the second round and was loudly criticized for kicking his club on the 16th tee after another dreadful shot.
“Certainly, I’m frustrated at times and I apologize if I offended anybody by that,” Wood said. “But I’ve hit some bad shots and it’s certainly frustrating at times not hitting the ball where you need to hit it.”
After posting a 72 in the third round, he started his final round three hours ahead of the leaders and 12 strokes out of the lead. After a 74, he talked of his poor ball-striking and his inability to devour the par-5s like he usually does. He made 13 pars, two birdies and one bogey on the par-5s.
“I didn’t hit the ball very good this week, and what’s frustrating is I know what to do, and I just don’t do it,” Woods said. “I get out there and I just don’t trust it at all. I fall back into the same old patterns again, and I just need to do more reps.
“Thank God my short game was good this week and my putting was really good. Unfortunately, they were all for pars, not for birdies. And this is a golf course you just have to dominate the par 5s, and I did not do that at all this week.”
While the red shirt on Sunday meant little to the outcome, the all-white ensemble of Bubba Watson – accented by the pink shaft of his powerful driver – ended up in the green jacket.
Starting the final round three shots out of the lead, Watson made four consecutive birdies starting at the 13th, signed for a 68 and moved to a playoff with Louis Oosthuizen, who finished with a 69. After both players parred the first extra hole, Watson came up with a signature moment on the second playoff hole and one of the most memorable shots in Masters history.
At the par-4 10th, he hooked his drive deep into the trees on the right. After Oosthuizen came up short with his approach, Watson carved a wedge nearly 90 degrees out of the woods, the ball coming to rest 10 feet from the hole. After Oosthuizen failed to get up and down for par, Watson tapped in for his par and won the first of his two green jackets.
This is the 18th story in a series looking at each of Tiger Woods’ appearances at the Masters. Catch up on the series here.
WATCH EVERY MASTERS TOURNAMENT – SUBSCRIBE TO ESPN+
Watch the full collection of official Masters films, which has a one-hour recap of every Masters from 1960 all the way up to 2018.
We recommend interesting sports viewing and streaming opportunities. If you sign up to a service by clicking one of the links, we may earn a referral fee.