If You’re Tiger Woods, Everything’s Possible

Imagine if Jackie Robinson had not only broken the color barrier but Babe Ruth’s home run record as well.

That’s sort of what Tiger Woods accomplished at the Masters.

He not only broke the color barrier in winning a major professional golf championship, but he broke a slew of records along the way.

At 21, he was the youngest Masters winner ever.

His 12-stroke victory margin was surpassed in a major championship only by Tom Morris Sr. in the 1862 British Open.

And in the 360 tournaments played in the four Grand Slam events, only Nick Faldo in the 1990 British Open at St. Andrews matched the 18 under par total Woods achieved.

The feeling hanging over the rolling hills of Augusta National after Woods took his green jacket and wandered off to look for new worlds to conquer was that this Masters was only a glimpse of things to come.

Woods is a pioneer in more than a racial sense. He seems determined to lead golf into uncharted territory, breaking records once thought to be unbreakable and setting standards certain to last a generation or longer.

His performance at Augusta National Golf Club shouted out this message: Anything is possible.

Is it too early to speculate on a Grand Slam? Nope.

Is is too ridiculous to think he could shoot a 59 in a major championship?

Hardly.

Is it folly to say Jack Nicklaus’ mark of 20 major championship victories will fall.

Not in the least.

Tiger Woods is a rock-solid combination of the three things that make a champion.

* THE GAME

Woods hits the ball farther than anyone

ever and put it in the fairway 26 of 28 times in the middle two rounds when he won the Masters.

Control of his irons has improved as coach Butch Harmon corrected a swing glitch. He has delicate touch around the greens and his putter gets better when it means the most.

* THE MIND

Nick Faldo said it took six or seven Masters to learn the intricacies of Augusta National. Woods figured it out midway through his seventh competitive round there.

He soaks up information like a sponge and is willing to try new things under the pressure of competition.

* THE HEART

Take every cliche--ice in his veins, eyes of an assassin, killer instinct--and they all apply. Not only does Woods have enormous courage but he seems to thrive on pressure.

With the tournament no longer in doubt, Woods was chasing only history, the 17-under-par Masters record. He broke it by one stroke making three par-saving putts in the 4-foot to 8-foot range in the final four holes.

“I know my goal is to obviously be the best,” Woods said after winning. “I know that’s a very lofty goal. But I think that if I try to accomplish that goal, if I do--great. If I don’t, I tried. I expect nothing but the best for myself. And I think as time goes along, hopefully that will happen.”

Woods will take a month off from competition, returning at the Byron Nelson Classic in Texas on May 15-18 and, according to those close to him, “probably not touch a golf club for the next two weeks.”

A likely scenario for Woods would be playing three tournaments in a row starting at the Nelson, take a week off and then play the U.S. Open at Congressional near Washington June 12-15.

At Congressional, Woods will try to be the first person since Jack Nicklaus in 1972 to win the Masters and the U.S. Open back-to-back, something that has only been done five times since the Masters started in 1934.

Craig Wood did it in 1941, Ben Hogan in 1951 and again in ‘53, Arnold Palmer in 1960 and Nicklaus in ’72.

Wood did not have a chance at the Grand Slam because there was no British Open in 1941 because of World War II. Hogan chose not to play in the ’51 British Open but played and won in ‘53, becoming the only man to win three pro majors in one year.

Palmer and Nicklaus both had heartbreaking experiences in the British Open, each finishing second. Palmer went on to finish seventh in the 1960 PGA Championship and Nicklaus was 13th in the PGA ’72.

If Tigermania is big now, imagine what it would be like if he wins the U.S. Open and goes to the British Open at Royal Troon in July trying to match Hogan’s mark of three majors in one year.

If Tigermania is big now imagine what it would be like if he goes to the PGA Championship at Winged Foot with a chance for the Grand Slam.

With Tiger Woods, the once unimaginable has suddenly become possible.