David Barrett

Golf with David
April 11th, 2008

Long-time golf journalist David Barrett is covering the Masters for us this week.

- GolfObserver editors

David Barrett on a writer, covering his 59th Masters

Is It Immelman's Moment?

On Friday, Trevor Immelman was asked if his cancer scare last December put things in perspective for him.

Photo: © Jamie Squire/Getty Images Trevor Immelman after making birdie on 18 to take a two shot lead into the final round.

He only partially took the bait. Yes, he said, it gave him perspective, but not in the sense of making golf any less important to him. "I've played this game since I was five years old, and all I ever wanted to do was to win tournaments."

In a sense, all of the 28-year-old Immelman's life has been preparing him for this moment, going into the final round of the Masters with the lead. He came from a golfing background in South Africa. In fact, his father, Johan, was a golf administrator who would ultimately become commissioner of the Sunshine Tour, the main professional circuit in the Immelmans' native land.

Immelman learned the game from his brother, Mark, a golf teacher who is nine years older. He grew up at Erinvale Country Club, one of South Africa's top courses. And he began playing a full tournament schedule of junior events when he was 13, both in South Africa and internationally. A trip to the U.S. earned him the 1996 PGA Junior Championship and the next year he was runner-up in the U.S. Junior. In 1998, he won the U.S. Public Links Championship at the age of 18 and played in the Masters the next year at 19.

He was basically South Africa's golden boy. Some observers in the U.S. at the time considered him cocky; there's no question that his sights were always set high.

Success has come as a professional, too, with three wins on the Sunshine Tour, three on the European Tour, one on the PGA Tour in his rookie season of 2006 and was a member of the International Presidents Cup team in 2005 and 2007. Maybe not quite as much success as he hoped, particularly in the majors. His best finishes there were a fifth at the Masters in 2005 and a sixth at the PGA Championship in 2007. In neither was a serious contender coming down the stretch.

Considering his background, though, I wouldn't put him in the category of a player who is going to be like a deer in the headlights in the final round. He's too talented, too determined, and too confident for that. Most of all, he's dreamed of this moment since he started playing the game. Not in the same sense that all junior golfers dream of this moment: He's always actually expected this to happen.

So, Sunday represents his chance, and we'll see if he's ready to take it.

Most systems seem to be on go. He's striking the ball superbly, leading the field in both fairways hit and greens in regulation. He's reasonably long off the tee, but disciplined in course management. (His strategy at Augusta's par fives is to go at them in two only if he can reach with an iron, and the longest iron in his bag is a 4-iron.)

Photo: © Jamie Squire/Getty Images Tiger Woods had reasons to be happy with his third round 68 which places him six back.

But there are three potential flies in the ointment. The first is his putting. Only a decent putter even in his outstanding rookie season, his performance on the greens dropped off last year, and has been downright poor in 2008. Will he have the confidence to make the key putts he needs to make?

Then there's the weather. After ideal scoring conditions during the week, players will have to adjust to cold, windy weather in the final round if the forecast is correct. Not exactly the best circumstances to try to hold onto the lead at Augusta National, where potential double and triple bogeys lurk around every corner.

Most of all, there's the Tiger Woods factor. You may have noticed that Woods shot himself right into the tournament with a 68 on Saturday and is now six strokes back. Based on his form since last fall, he is a better player than he has ever been. He has never come from behind on the final day to win a major, but you get the feeling he is primed to do just that.

If Woods makes up two or three shots early, the game truly be on and Immelman will feel Tiger breathing down his neck. If that happens, will Immelman be able to fulfill his destiny on Sunday, or will it be postponed? Stay tuned.

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