Golf's Fall From Grace
Fall From Grace
If you are a golf fan this term wouldn’t have escaped you ever since Tiger’s Unforgettable Thanksgiving Day 2009.
And it wouldn’t have been all the more apparent on the Final Hole of The Augusta Masters 2010.
Picture this, for how many months now, golf has had its number one player out of the picture, into seclusion and into rehab--only to miraculously resurface for the Masters at Augusta the weekend which started on April the 8th all the way to that memorable Sunday the 11th.
On the 18th hole, the Prestigious Green Jacket could have gone to the Korean Anthony Kim, or even K J Choi. Or it could have been taken by the Englishmen Lee Westwood or Ian Poulter who had a shot at the end of Saturday at least, or even Fred Couples who made a gallant move on Sunday, or anybody in the top ten for that matter.
Or it could have been had by Tiger Woods, who chose this specific tournament to make his comeback and make a run to grab yet another well sought after, Green Jacket.
After his hiatus from the public and from golf and after that fateful Thanksgiving Day incident that shocked the whole world and turned his life, and the lives of his loved ones and golf and the giant companies that he endorses and those who sponsor him and whose products have become almost synonymous with the global brand name Tiger Woods.
Imagine Augusta 2010, Final Shot, Poulter is out, Couples out, Kim and Choi out, Westwood out and the great Tiger Woods out, his family and his wife nowhere near the green, nobody even thinking they would be there.
But here comes Phil Mickelson to save the day for golf and for everything good we wanted in the sport of golf, to families everywhere and to people in general.
Final birdie putt… goes in. Crowd goes wild, well not the Tiger fans of course.
Mickelson embraces his wife who barely had the strength to be up with him throughout the whole tournament as she is battling breast cancer.
But she was there... on the last hole... on the last day of the tournament.
Their children were there, sharing a great family moment as well. And also giving a loving hug was Mickelson’s mother who is also undergoing cancer treatment--a truly emotional, memorable and all-together feel-good family moment for Lefty and the whole world to see.
Let’s reminisce on what Phil had to say after that tender touching moment forever etched in the minds of everyone who saw it.
"It's been an emotional year, and I'm very proud of my wife and the fight and struggle she's been through, and it's been a difficult year, and to come out on top in this tournament is very emotional."
"I don't normally shed tears over wins, and when Amy and I hugged off 18, that was a very emotional moment for us and something that I'll look back on and just cherish, I'll cherish every moment of this week. This has been a very special week."
A special week indeed, golf needed a hero. And there they were--an entire family of heroes sharing one of the greatest moments of their lives for everyone to see.
Indeed, I would venture a guess, that there were also a lot of people who was watching that scene shedding a tear or two at that tender moment.
Especially, in these hard times of uncertainty, calamities, sicknesses and ups and downs.
And what about Tiger?
The good news, he is back. And he had a fighting chance at winning it.
But well, as far as we know he was all alone at the 18th hole, it would have been an even sadder sight for him if he would have won.
And maybe even sadder still for golf.
And think about what it could have felt like after winning a great tournament and you look left and right, waiting and hoping to see your family, your loved ones and if they would come, but they weren’t even there.
And imagine, after promising to minimize his outbursts upon his return for this tournament and to his fans who stuck with him during his difficult hour, he was back to his normal Tiger Wood’s self again on Saturday, cursing at himself, swearing and saying unprintables even being caught and recorded by cameras which were of course all over him every step of the way. And worse it was all aired live on televison.
And what about the winner Phil, the "Gentleman of Golf", I am hoping on and off the grass, not a single bad word out of his mouth the whole time.
Karma?
Your guess is as good as mine.
It couldn't have had happened to a more deserving man and a more deserving family--a victory over all the odds and all the trials.
To Tiger, all I can say is that the higher they get, the harder they fall.
And indeed this is one fall from grace that really hit hard.
Welcome back though to Tiger and more power to him and his promise to be a better man on and off the golf course. We do hope he gets his act together and put his wife and his family in a higher priority in his life and lets hope to see even more great golf from him.
Hub Number: #017
Date: 2010-Apr-15
