Sergio Garcia decided this day was never going to come. Saying he was content with his lot in life wouldn't be fair, but there were a lot worse things to fall back on in life than nine PGA Tour victories and over $28 million in career earnings. Something felt lacking in the golfer's career, though, a void that could only be filled with an elusive major championship. If he could somehow pull out a victory at The Masters, the mecca of golf, his whole career narrative could shift - and it did.
Emotional victory
Garcia played consistently in the first two rounds to stay in contention.
Historically, the third round was where he blew up at The Masters, though. That wouldn't be the case this year, though, as he shot a 70 to stay close to the lead. His 69 on Sunday wasn't good enough to win the tournament on his own, however. He would need to take down Justin Rose in a playoff to earn his first major.
On the sudden death 18th hole, Rose cracked under the pressure. He sent a shot into the trees and couldn't recover, giving Garcia two putts from 12 feet away to win the green jacket. He only needed one, as he sank the birdie putt and fell to his knees, overcome with emotion as the gallery chanted his name. Finally, the man who once thought he wasn't good enough to win a major had won the mac daddy of them all: he had won The Masters by shooting under par in all four rounds, the only competitor to do so during a windy weekend at Augusta.
Sizing up history and the field
Garcia didn't just make personal history by winning The Masters on Sunday - he made PGA Tour history as well. He had played in 70 majors as a professional prior to this one, the most ever played in by a golfer before they successfully won their first one. It was fitting that he made history on what would have been Seve Ballesteros' 60th birthday; slipping on the green jacket was the perfect homage to the greatest Spanish golfer of all-time.
Obviously Rose was disappointed to finish second to Garcia in the playoff and on the final leader board. Charl Schwartzel virtually came out of nowhere to finish third at -6 for the tournament. Meanwhile, Ernie Els finished last among players who made the weekend cut in what could end up being his final appearance at the tournament due to his expiring exemption. Some of the excitement lacked during the final day of The Masters, however, as Tiger Woods, Dustin Johnson, and most significantly, Arnold Palmer were nowhere in sight.
