Top 5 Tiger Woods moments from his Masters career
The 2024 Masters is right around the corner, and while many are looking forward to seeing stars like Rory McIlory, Scottie Scheffler and the reigning champion, Jon Rahm, Tiger Woods’ presence at Augusta National Golf Club, which the field currently states, is always a huge draw.
Five of Woods’ 15 major tournament wins have come at Augusta, and there have been a multitude of iconic moments for him at the Masters, leaving golf fans with memories for a lifetime.
It’s hard to boil down Woods’ greatness at Augusta into just a few moments, but these five stand out above the rest.
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Woods’ third green jacket came in 2002, when he was favored to win the tournament again after having captured the title the year prior (more on that later).
Entering Sunday, Nick Faldo had been the only PGA Tour player to defend his Masters title, which came in 1990. Woods was already 11-under entering the final round, and though he shot a 1-under 71, he was never threatened.
Woods finished with a three-shot lead, as Retief Goosen shot 2-over on his round to finish 9-over. Woods’ reign over majors continued as he’d later win the 2002 U.S. Open that year as well.
In 2000, Woods won the PGA Championship, U.S. Open and Open Championship. Would he get to hoist the trophy at four majors in a row? You bet.
Forever marked as the "Tiger Slam," Woods shot 16-under for the tournament, beating out David Duval by two strokes and Phil Mickelson by three, and there were plenty of iconic moments in this tournament that made sure he captured his second career green jacket.
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Woods had shot an opening round 70, and he didn’t look quite like himself. However, the second round saw just the spark he needed when he had a tough shot from 253 yards out on Hole 8. But he got the ball on the green, and two-putted on the par-5 hole to birdie.
Woods would finish that round with a 66, vaulting himself up the leaderboard to tied-second with an 8-under tournament.
After a third round 68, Woods would battle with David Duval in the final round. He established his lead on Hole 11, hitting an approach shot from 145 yards out to have a tap-in birdie.
It wasn’t quite what Bobby Jones did in 1930, when he won all four majors in the same calendar year. But Woods’ majors run is something no one has been able to replicate since.
How do you win your first career Masters and major? You blow out the competition in Augusta.
One of the most dominant major performances of all time, Woods finished 18-under for the tournament, with Tom Kite at 6-under being the runner-up. The margin of victory remains the largest in Masters history, and his four-day scoring record of 270 stood until Dustin Johnson broke it in 2020.
"There it is – a win for the ages!" Jim Nantz said on the Masters broadcast, which was seen by an estimated 44 million viewers, as Woods became the youngest, and first non-White, golfer to win the Masters.
To think he started the tournament 4-over in his first nine holes seems baffling, but it was only up from there as he blew past the competition and embraced his father, Earl Woods, after draining his final putt on 18 on Sunday.
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Many will tell you of the magic Woods pulled on No. 16 at Augusta in the final round of the weekend, which was mired by rain most of the time.
Woods shot an opening round 74, but posted a 66 and 65 in the second and third rounds, respectively, to be paired with Chris DiMarco heading into Sunday. They battled all day long, but on No. 16, DiMarco hit a shot right in the center of the par-3 green, while Woods pulled his tee shot just left off the green.
Woods stepped into about a 50-yard chip, hoping he could use the contour of the green to get it close and tap in for par. What transpired as he hit a clean chip to the left side of the green was the greatest Masters shot of all time, as the ball trickled its way toward the hole. If the suspense wasn’t high enough with a clear chance to see it fall for birdie, the ball appeared to stop at the lip.
It was only for a second before it fell into the hole and Woods, along with the crowd around the green, erupted in celebration. Broadcaster Verne Lundquist’s iconic, "In your life have you seen anything like that?!" call forever lives alongside Woods’ miraculous make.
Woods and DiMarco would end up in a playoff to determine who won the tournament. Playing Hole 18 again, DiMarco tapped his ball in for par and hoped Woods didn’t bury his 15-foot birdie putt, but after a long look, he drained it for the victory.
While the fourth green jacket is quite the feat, Woods’ chip-in is arguably the best shot of his career.
Woods had multiple second-place finishes following his 2005 victory, but his life off the course appeared to impact his game. He dealt with his personal scandal in late November 2009, which ultimately led to him apologizing for his infidelity.
He’d continue competing on Tour and in the Masters, but he was never able to have the same success. In 2013, he even admitted in a post-round ESPN interview that he had an illegal drop on the par-5 15th hole, though he wasn’t disqualified.
Back injuries would also ail Woods in the years leading up to the 2019 Masters, where the improbable occurred.
Woods posted a 70, 68 and 67 in his first three rounds of the tournament, putting him tied-second with Tony Finau heading into the final round on Sunday. Francesco Molinari was two strokes ahead of them in first place at 13-under, but there was a sense from the crowd that Woods’ 15th major win was on the horizon.
Molinari held the lead for 11 holes, but the infamous Rae’s Creek on No. 12 swallowed his tee shot and forced him to double bogey. Woods was at 11-under at that point, and Molinari was now tied with him.
Woods would pull away at No. 15, birdying the hole to take the lead at 13-under. Meanwhile, Dustin Johnson finished his round at 12-under for the tournament and Xander Schauffele and Brooks Koepka would go on to do the same.
But Woods would birdie No. 16 and par No. 17, which led to him walking over to Hole 18 with a two-shot lead, needing only a bogey to clinch the victory. That’s exactly what Woods would do, and though it wasn’t the best hole, it was the perfect ending to a Masters that some believed Woods wouldn’t win again in his career.
The iconic moment of hugging his son, Charlie, as he walked off the 18th green, knowing all the fight and determination to get back into the winner’s circle at a major had paid off, pulls at the heart strings today.
The chip-in is legendary, but Wood was still in his golfing prime then. The fact he was able to take home his fifth green jacket after not winning a major since the 2008 U.S. Open is as legendary as it gets.
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