Augusta, Ga.; , April 6 (BNA): The Masters are always something special, but they’re adding the return of Tiger Woods and the end of COVID-19 restrictions and the first-year specialty is set to turn into a golf celebration.
After COVID has limited the number of spectators allowed into the grounds for the past two years, galleries are back in full force as well as the unmistakable Augusta National fanfare of Woods in the manicured fairways, Reuters reports.
Anyone entering the luxurious Augusta National can feel the difference.
The smell of azalea seems sweeter, the pimento cheese sandwiches a little tastier and the traffic is busier.
“You can feel it,” said Spaniard John Ram, the world number two and favorite bettor to go out in a coveted green on Sunday. “A lot of it is the tiger.
“I was playing Tony Fino in the ninth lead yesterday.
“We were seven, and they (Woods group) were walking on two, and I had never seen a block (of spectators) this big, until Sunday in a dispute, over those two slots.
“There’s a lot of electricity in the air in that sense, and you have the tiger in there, yeah. Monday felt like a Saturday at a regular event.”
Tigermania revenue
The first day of formal practice on Monday provided a glimpse of what to expect from next week.
Tigermania is set to return after Woods confirmed on Tuesday he would play for the Masters 14 months after a car crash that nearly left doctors amputating his right leg, paving the way for what could be one of the sport’s greatest comebacks.
“It was unbelievable,” said Justin Thomas, who joined Woods for Monday’s training tour with Fred Kiples.
“I had some friends who sent me some pictures last night, and that was probably more people who watched me play an Augusta National tour and weren’t there to watch me.”
If returning from a devastating injury wasn’t enough, Woods upped the ante by putting himself in the spotlight, saying he’s not only ready to play but capable of winning a sixth green jacket.
Not even his fellow golfers bet on him.
“I wouldn’t be surprised,” said Rory McIlroy, who will be chasing the first Masters title that would complete his career in Grand Slams for all four disciplines. “It hits it really well. It flakes really well. It’s sharp.”
“It’s just a physical request of getting about 72 holes here this week.
“Would I be surprised? No, I’m not surprised by anything he does anymore.”
big theater
Woods has not competed on the PGA Tour since the November 2020 Masters, and his decision to return this week ensures a great stage for the unveiling of majors season.
A 15-time major winner certainly couldn’t pick a better place than Augusta National to turn back.
Woods has made 23 Masters appearances and has a closet full of green jackets, most recently in 2019 when after years of surgery and personal problems he managed against all odds to end an 11-year drought.
“Glad to hear Tiger will be trying it out at The Masters,” Jack Nicklaus wrote on Twitter. “While he is in a different place in his life, Tiger would not have competed if he had not believed he could compete and win.
“Tiger knows this golf course like the back of his hand, and in 2019, once he takes center, remember how he wins.
“If his body holds up, can he do it again?”