National Letdown

Tiger Woods' uncharacteristically vocal quest for the Grand Slam ended at Augusta National as Trevor Immelman won his first major title

Indicative of the tough going, Immelman's 75 matched the highest final round by a winner.

By Ron Sirak

Photo By Stephen Szurlej

November 28, 2008

First there was the Jones Slam, when Bobby won the U.S. and British Opens and Amateurs in 1930, and then there was the Tiger Slam, when Woods gobbled up four consecutive majors over the 2000-01 seasons. But never has anyone captured all four modern Grand Slam events in the same year. Never had anyone discussed the possibility of such a feat as matter-of-factly as Tiger Woods did coming into the 2008 Masters. And perhaps never has anyone entered a major seeming to be such a prohibitive favorite.

Even before he played his first tournament of the year, the Buick Invitational in January, Woods said on his website that 2008 could be the year he runs the table in the majors. And that attitude hadn't mellowed by the time he reached Augusta National GC in quest of his fifth green jacket and 14th professional major title as he pursued Jack Nicklaus' record of 18. Because it was Woods and because of all he had achieved in his remarkable career, the speculation seemed more than plausible: It seemed inevitable.

"You have to understand why I said that," Woods explained two days before the first round at Augusta National. "I've done it before. I've won all four in a row [a reference to when he won the last three majors of 2000 and then the 2001 Masters]. I think this is my 12th or 13th season out here, and nine of those years I've won five or more tournaments, so [I've] just got to win the right four. That's what it boils down to."

There were many reasons to take Woods seriously. He liked the four venues for the majors—Torrey Pines, Royal Birkdale and Oakland Hills, in addition to Augusta National. He was playing perhaps the best golf of his career, having won nine of his previous 11 tournaments, including two World Golf Championship events, two FedEx Cup Playoff events, the PGA Championship, the Buick Invitational at Torrey Pines, the Dubai Desert Classic, the Arnold Palmer Invitational and his own Target World Challenge.

And then there was probably the most compelling argument of all: He is Tiger Woods, a man who seems to have the ability to will things to happen. If he believed he was capable of winning the 2008 Grand Slam, who were we to doubt him? The problem was that Trevor Immelman didn't get that memo, and neither did Tiger's putter.

As often happens, the unanticipated story ended up being more compelling than the expected one. While there was a certain level of disappointment in having Woods lose his Grand Slam bid in the year's first major, he made an inspiring and entertaining effort before finishing second, three strokes behind the eight-under-par 280 Immelman posted on a raw day when wind gusts hit 20 miles per hour.

Woods entered the Masters with bold talk about a Grand Slam but was runner-up, his week marked by mediocre putting and a great escape on No. 13 in the final round. Photo: Donald Miralle

Brandt Snedeker, the 27-year-old mop of dirty blond hair playing just his second year on tour, briefly tied for the lead Sunday before collapsing into a tearful, final-round 77 but not before winning the hearts of most of the gallery. Just as dramatically, Steve Flesch (78) and Paul Casey (79) unraveled down the stretch after being within striking distance through 54 holes.

But the best story of the week happened to be the guy who played the best all week. Immelman, a 28-year-old South African, awoke Sunday morning to find a voice message from countryman Gary Player, a nine-time major winner, who called to wish Trevor luck—and offer some unsolicited advice about keeping his head still while putting.

A grueling 75 strokes later—tying Arnold Palmer (1962) for the highest final-round score by a Masters champion—Immelman had his first major title. The green jacket was a long way indeed from the hospital gown he wore just four months earlier when a benign tumor was removed from his diaphragm, a seven-inch scar on his lower back bearing witness to the surgery.

"This has probably been the ultimate roller-coaster ride, and I hate roller coasters," Immelman said after the victory was secured. "It's really kind of weird."

That might be an understatement. Immelman ended 2007 by winning the Nedbank Challenge in South Africa only to find himself on an operating table a week later. An agonizing two days in which he waited for the biopsy results followed the surgery. "I get the right result there, and I make a pretty fast recovery [and] here I am, after missing the cut last week, Masters champion," said Immelman. "It's the craziest thing I have ever heard of."