The 74th Masters couldn’t have turned out better. Instead of Tiger Woods returning to golf to win his 5th green jacket, Phil Mickelson captured his 3rd.
It was an emotional win for Mickelson, who has watched while his wife and his mother are both battling breast cancer. Watching Mickelson be able to share the moment with his wife Amy and his family, was both emotional and thrilling.
Mickelson said, “I don’t normally shed tears over wins, but when Amy and I hugged off 18, that was a very emotional moment for us and something I’ll look back on and cherish.”
Give Tiger Woods credit though. He finished tied for fourth and not many had him going that high in his first tournament back. Until an inconsistent final round, Woods played well enough to allow people to think he had a chance to win.
But this tournament belonged to Mickelson. He played a bogey free final round, shooting a 5-under par 67 to go 16-under for the tournament. He also moved into some pretty good company with his 3rd Masters win. Only Tiger Woods and Arnold Palmer with four and Jack Nicklaus, with six, have won more Masters titles.
Lee Westwood finished 2nd, 3-shots back of Mickelson. Anthony Kim was third and Tiger Woods and K.J. Choi tied for fourth.
Tiger Woods, like him or not, will be back to win more tournaments and more majors. But this day belonged to Phil Mickelson and his family. And if you watched the tournament and saw the tears of joy with Phil and his family, you can’t help but think there is justice in this world of ours.