Momentum Swing

Cubby Beil
Zeta Beta Tau

With The Masters quickly approaching, the playing field of golf has become even more exciting. After his March 4 victory at the Honda Classic, Rory McIlroy took over the number one ranking in the world. McIlory, who we remember last year from his gut-wrenching collapse during the final round of the 2011 Masters, is the second youngest player to ever earn the number one ranking. McIlroy, at 22 years old, has bounced back from a collapse that most thought would leave long-lasting scars and a mental block, has brought back the momentum that golf has needed ever since Tiger Woods’ struggle began.

But the real story at the Honda Classic was Tiger’s incredible final round. Tiger came into the final round nine shots back, battled his way into a two-way tie for second, two strokes behind McIlroy. Tiger was nearly perfect on his final round shooting a career-best 62. That’s right, career-best. Tiger, the youngest player ever to earn the number one spot when he was 21 years old, just had his best round of golf ever. Did I mention that Tiger also held the number one spot for an incredible five consecutive years?

This year, at every tournament, Tiger seemed to be improving. Whether he was driving the ball longer and more accurately, or pinpointing his iron shots, Tiger was improving. But he still wasn’t the Tiger that owned the top spot in golf for so many years. That was until he eagled on the third and 18th holes on his final round at the Honda Classic, and birdied holes five, seven, 11 and 17. Woods, who ended his first round at one over, came back the second round to shoot one under and even out. The third round he shot two under and the final round he shot 10 under, landing at 12 under for the tournament.

For the first time in a long time, Tiger did not seem disappointed during his post-round interview. Usually the robotic-like, stone-faced Woods answers questions bluntly with very little elaboration. Yesterday, Tiger had a smile on his face during his interview and told reporters that he was having fun. At that point, Tiger had just finished the best round of golf he has ever had, and it put the pressure on McIlroy to play mistake-free for the rest of the day. Which he did. McIlroy hit the shots he had to have without getting flustered. After his collapse in The Masters last spring, McIlory has shown the world that he has the composure and skill to take ownership of the number one spot in golf.

There is still some golf to be played before The Masters, but this is a huge momentum swing for McIlroy, Woods and golf in general. Now the world impatiently waits to see Woods and McIlroy battle it out at Augusta National, the biggest stage in golf. McIlroy will look to avenge his historic collapse, while Woods seeks the green jacket for the fifth time in his career. With Tiger finally finding his game, the question is now: Will McIlroy become the next Tiger Woods, or does Tiger have enough left in the tank to become his old self? Tune in April 7-10 for The Masters.

Cubby is a sophomore studying advertising. You may contact him at rbeil@utexas.edu.