It’s just sixteen days to The Masters and this trip to Augusta will mark the tenth anniversary of Tiger Woods’ last Masters’ win.
We aren’t sure if Tiger will be there to join in the celebration but I have a feeling that he’ll be one of the top topics of conversation regardless if he is there or not.
The ’05 Masters is remembered for Tiger’s out of this world chip in at the sixteenth hole. It was the shot of the tournament and a built in commercial as his ball just trickled into the hole with the Nike swoosh front and center.
It was an ad man’s dream come true.
But what many seem to forget is that Tiger nearly blew it after that shot. 
Woods had started the day with a three shot lead over his playing partner Chris DiMarco, now of Golf Channel fame. DiMarco was playing the best golf of his career and actually held the lead after rounds one and two.
Woods had taken the third round lead with a sizzling 65 and was at -11 to Dimarco’s-8 when they started the final round.
DiMarco was able to gain a stoke on Woods by the time they reached fourteen where DiMarco birdies to cut the lead to one shot. Both combatants birdied the fifteenth and Tiger was in big trouble on sixteen with his ball off the green and down in the hollow. DiMarco looked to have the advantage with his ball on the middle of the green.
The momentum seemed to be with DiMarco. Then the chip heard round the world gave Tiger a shocking birdie and when all DiMarco could do was two putt for par the lead was back to two strokes.
Ahead by two with two to play it appeared that Woods had it in the bag. But this is where memory fails most Tiger fans.
He went on to bogey both seventeen and eighteen to fall into a tie with DiMarco. In fact, DiMarco had the best chance to win in regulation when his birdie chip bounced off the flagstick at eighteen. He sank the ten foot putt for par to go to a playoff.
The two played eighteen again and Woods won with a birdie but most fans forget that and recall the chip on sixteen as the decisive shot.
Had DiMarco’s chip fallen in the cup he would have claimed The Masters and the world would have changed.
How tough this must have been for DiMarco who had lost the 2004 PGA Championship to Vijay Singh in a playoff. But he took it in stride, “I went out and shot 68 around here on Sunday, which is a very good round, and 12-under is usually good enough to win. It was just that I was playing against Tiger Woods.”
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