The 2011 Masters Final Round LIVE! Blog (PART ONE)

(Rory McIlroy, leader through the first three rounds of the 2011 Masters, aims to become the second youngest man to ever win the Green Jacket.)

The following is the first half of a live blog of the final round of the 75th Masters golf tournament held on Sunday, April 10th, 2011. It was written between 12:30 p.m. and 3:35 p.m. Central standard time.

Two live blogs in one week?!?! You bet your sweet bippy! In a week on this site that has already seen me giving WrestleMania 27 the live blog treatment (just, you know, only four days after this time), I've decided to do another one for what is arguably the best annual occurrence in all of sports, along with Super Bowl Sunday, the first day of the NCAA tournament, and the official Brett Favre will he or won't he decision day: Masters Sunday, where great memories are made, careers become defined, and golfers make history in America's most prestigious of golf courses. And this year is no exception. Granted the names on top the leaderboard aren't as star-studded as usual as they are mostly filled with young amateurs and old farts that not many people outside of passionate gold fans know (Day! Choi! Cabrera! Van Pelt!), but tonight could see the start of a brand new era in the sport: the Rory McIlroy era. Through the first three rounds, the 21 year old Northern Irishmen, hyped for the past couple of years as the sport's newest star, stands on top of the leaderboard as -12. Can he hold on to win the first of what should be many majors to come, or will someone in the hunt rise out of the pack with a brilliant round of their own (the likes of, say, Phil Mickelson's bogey-free round last Masters Sunday) to capitalize on McIlroy neccessary struggles? Either two things can happen: we can see a dominating performance by McIlroy which will makr the dawn of a new era, or another close finish at Augusta. But which one? Only one way to find out for ourselves, and that is to watch these next few hours live. Live blog, commence!

12:30 p.m.- Hello, friends! It is a beautiful Sunday afternoon, not just in Augusta, Georgia by what I'm seeing on the Amen Corner feed on Masters.org, but also right here in the Windy City, Chicago, Illinois, where I will be bringing this live blog to you, the reader. I'm sitting here in my home's upstairs living room, sitting alongside some Chinese food, a bottle of Dr. Pepper, and special guest star, mj50. mj50 is rooting for either Jason Day and Tiger Woodsto win, and doesn't like the idea of seeing McIlroy winning this tournament. Why doesn't he want McIlroy to win, you ask? "I don't know, I just want to him to," says mj50, glib-like. Funny, that would be my way to describe my dislike of Phil Mickelson. Like father, like son, I suppose.

12:45 p.m.- The first of many updates of the scoreboard just as CBS is twenty minutes away from beginning their final round telecast:
1. Rory McIlroy: -12 (tees off at 1:40 p.m./CT)
2. Angel Cabrera: -8 (tees off at 1:40 p.m./CT)
2. Charl Schwartzel: -8 (tees off at 1:30 p.m./CT)
2. K.J. Choi: -8 (tees off at 1:30 p.m./CT)
2. Jason Day: -8 (tees off at 1:20 p.m./CT)
6. Adam Scott: -7 (tees off at 1:20 p.m./CT)
6. Luke Donald: -6 (tees off at 1:20 p.m./CT)
8. Bo Van Pelt: -6 (tees off at 1:10 p.m./CT)
9. Bubba Watson: -5 (tees off at 1:00 p.m./CT)
9. Ross Fisher: -5 (tees off at 1:00 p.m./CT)
9. Geoff Oglivy: -5 (tees off at 12:50 p.m./CT)
9. Fred Couples: -5 (tees off at 12:50 p.m./CT)
9. Tiger Woods: -5 (just teed off)

So, in other words, it's McIlroy and a dozen people chasing him from behind. While I do think that McIlroy is going to come out on top in the end, there are still a few in the hunt that I do think has a really good chance to catch up to him, specifically Argentinian Miguel Cabrera Not only did he win this very tournament two years ago, but the winner has come out of the final group 19 times out of the past twenty years. Plus, he seems to be the most mentally ready out of the all of the challengers.

12:45 p.m.- Currently, CBS is re-airing the 1975 Masters as part of their annual "Jim Nantz Remembers Augusta" special. Watching the telecast back then and comparing it to today, one thing that struck me was how classier some of those announcers were back then. I think it has a lot to do with the fact that most of them had those aristocratic British accent. It's accents like those that turned "The King Speech" from a great movie to Oscar winner.

12:50 p.m.- For McIlroy to crush the competition, it all depends on how he starts off on the first five or six holes. If he can maintain his great play, and not get his mentality weakened, then I think it should be smooth sailing from then on out. However, if he bogeys the first few holes, while some of the guys at -8 or -7 catch up to him with a few birdies, then it's on.

12:55 p.m.- Five minutes left!

12:59 p.m.- One minute left!

1:00 p.m.- It's time...



1:03 p.m.- CBS begins its Masters Sunday telecast with a replay of the opening tee shots Thursday morning with Arnold Palmer and Jack Nicklaus, followed by a replay of Tiger Woods's eagle attempt at 2nd, which ended up missing to the right. That birdie putt really exemplifies Tiger's week at Augusta. He has driven the ball really well, and has been striking the ball into the green respectfully, but his putting continues to bring him down. Unless he can improve his putting the rest of the afternoon, he has no shot at winning this.

1:08 p.m.- Once again, Jim Nantz and Nick Faldo introduces themselves as the lead commentators in today's cast of eight. As much as I like to mock Nick Faldo, he really has become one of my favorite announcers in the game (second favorite behind NBC's Johnny Miller). Sure, his may overreact sometimes and treat the most miniscule of mistakes into the end of the world (specifically, during Masters Sunday), but he really is passionate about the game and seems to get into it at every tournament.

1:10 p.m.- Woods makes his birdie at the 2nd to move up to -6. Still a long way to go for him to catch up.

1:20 p.m.- Beautiful second shot from Tiger Woods at the third, setting up about six feet for a birdie. Meanwhile, Phil Mickelson misses a par putt attempt at nine, so he should go back to -3. You can hear the sense of surprise by Nantz and Faldo at how tough of a time the defending champ. is having trying to have an insane front nine. Obviously, they have become spoiled after seeing Mickelson dominate in the previous two Masters final rounds.

1:23 p.m.- My dream final round for today: Woods goes 31-32 in the round to shoot a course record of 63. McIlroy, meanwhile, shoots 70, meaning that the final round will end with both tied at -14. This will result in an unforgettable, four hole sudden death playoff battle in a battle versus golf's #1 star trying to return to glory and golf's rising star trying to make a name for himself. Now THAT would be a Masters moment to remember!

1:28 p.m.- I'm sorry CBS, but could you tell me one more time as to how McIlroy's possible victory today would be similar to Tiger's first Masters win in '97? Even though you've been constantly mentioning it, I keep forgetting.

1:33 p.m.- Sorry if some of the lengths between updates will be pretty lengthy for the next few hours. It just so happen that on the same day golf's biggest day occurs, four Chicago sports teams have games during a four and a half hour window (the White Sox vs. the Rays, the Cubs vs. the Brewers, the Bulls vs. the Magic and the Blackhawks in a critical game against the Red Wings that could potentially decide whether or not they get the West's final playoff spot). In other words, this day has become an embarrassment of riches in sports and a burden because of this live blog.

1:36 p.m.- Just realized that I had the chance of turning this Masters final round live blog into a four sports mega live blog. I think it's safe to say that I didn't think things through well enough.

1:40 p.m.- The final pairing of McIlroy and Cabrera has just teed off McIlroy's shot was just as you'd expect from someone leading this tournament by four while Cabrera hooks it wide left. Meanwhile, Charl Schwartzel, the South African who started the four back, made an incredible birdie shot at the first hole to claim (if only temporarily) sold second place at -9.

1:49 p.m.- So, after knocking his tee shot into the trees, Cabrera barely misses a long birdie putt at the first. In other words, it's a lucky par to start the day off for Cabrera. If there's anyone who can make the claim of being the luckiest golfer in Masters history, it's that man. Meanwhile, Donald birdies the 2nd to move to -8 while McIlroy bogeys the first to drop to -11. The current leader board:
1. McIlroy: -11 (1)
2. Schwartzel: -9 (2)
3. Cabrera: -8 (1)
3. Donald: -8 (2)
3. K.J. Choi: -8 (1)
3. Day: -8 (2)

While this has been an entertaining start to the final round, I'm going to respectfully step aside to watch the final four minutes of the Hawks-Wings game. Chicago is down by one, needing anything but a loss in regulation to clinch a playoff spot. See you in twenty minutes!

2:11 p.m.- Well, it now appears that tonight I'm going to have be a Minnesota Wild fan. Anyways, here's a quick update of what happened while I was gone.
-McIlroy: Pars the second, remains at -11.
-Schwartzel: Eagles the third hole, and not all of a sudden is tied with McIlroy for the lead at -11.
-Cabrera: Birdies the second, goes to -9.
-Woods: Birdies the sixth, rises up to -7.

So, basically, the four shot lead by McIlroy falls in a span of forty minutes. By the way, how many packs of cigarettes and glasses of whiskey a day does it take to get the deep voice of Pat Summerrall?

2:16 p.m.- Tiger birdies the seventh to improve to -8. He fist pumps as the ball rolled to the hole. The leaderboard:
1. McIlroy: -11 (2)
1. Schwartzel: -11 (3)
3. Cabrera: -9 (2)
4. Woods: -8 (7)
4. Choi: -8 (3)
4. Donald: -8 (3)
4. Scott: -8 (3)

In other words, we have a 21 year old rising star, the '09 winner of this event, a relative unknown, and golf's most dominant player of the past 15 years within three shots of each other. Ladies and gentlemen, the final round of the 2011 Masters has officially begun.

2:18 p.m.- While I am glad that Woods is on the charge and am cheering him on, the CBS crew has got to tone it down with the "Tiger's back!"comments. Yes, he's had a few holes. However, he hasn't won a tournament in around eighteen months, and he's had problems with the putter at times. Call me skeptical, but I'm willing to wait a few more holes to make such a judgment.

2:20 p.m.- Oh, dear! It appears that rory McIlroy is going to bogey for the second time in four holes! Well, I'm not shocked. The person with either the most experience, the momentum, and/or the mentality is usually the one who will come out on top. McIlroy has not been either of those three things today.

2:21 p.m.- A magnificent second shot by Tiger Woods at the eigth, setting up a good eagle opportunity to move up to -10, one behind the leader, Charl Schwartzel. This Masters Sunday keeps getting better and more exciting by the minute!

2:31 p.m.- Tiger Woods gets the eagle at 8th, putting him at -10. He isnow tied with Schwartzel and one behind leader Rory McIlroy (who has made the par putt, by the way). His fists pumps have now become bigger, he has played bogey-less in every hole except in the fourth, the gallery has become more louder, and the other top golfers in the field are now finally starting to feel his intimidation. I repeat: this Masters Sunday is getting better and better!

2:33 p.m.- By the way, all throughout the day I will be embedding clips of some of the day's best shots as fast as I possibly can. Here is the first of these embeddings, with Schwartzel's amazing shot at the third that put him at 11 under par:




2:40 p.m.- Sorry for the delay. Some technical difficulties are not allowing me continue on. Please be patient for a moment.

2:49 p.m.- Thank you for being patient for these past nineteen minutes. Anyways, it appears that the nerves appear to have finally won the youngster, McIlroy, as he has now bogeyed the fifth hole, making him +2 for the day and -10 for the tournament. He has now gone from leading by four at the start of the day to tied with Charl Schwartzel and Tiger Woods, who has made an eleven foot putt for par at the ninth hole. Woods, as you can assume, has been on fire this round. He went 31 in the front nine, better than anyone thought. His swagger and confidence is back for the first time since 2009. His fist pumps have continued to become firmer and more powerful, while his midset appears to be as good (if not better) than during his last major victory (at the '08 U.S. Open, when he famously won it with one broken leg). So, yes, he's looking unstoppable so far.

2:52 p.m.- Two other reasons why this Woods performance has been remarkable so far:
1) In his fifteen years as pro, he has NEVER won a major while trailing heading into the final round. All of his 14 major victories have come with him as the leader through three rounds. If he can pull this remarkable com-from-behind victory, it will not doubt end up being one of his greatest display of will in any tournament.
2) Most of the birdies and eagles that Woods has had in the Masters come in par-5 holes. This time, he is doing it in par four holes, where he has been around +20 in his career.

3:00 p.m.- Another look at the leaderboard at when now head into the third hour of CBS's coverage of this thrilling final round:
1. Woods: -10 (9)
1. McIlroy: -10 (5)
1. Schwartzel: -10 (6)
3. Day: -8 (6)
3. Choi: -8 (6)
3. Cabrera: -8 (5)

3:03 p.m.- Jim Nantz makes a good point. For the past few months, there have been countless occasions of media personnel and current players talking about how Woods no longer intimidates them during the tournaments. Now, it appears that this theory has been debunked with Woods charging and 21 year old McIlroy struggling both on the course and psychologically. So, what the lesson here? As always, don't trust the pundits.

3:06 p.m.- Veteran golfer K.J. Choi birdies the seventh hole, putting him at -9 and one behind our three leaders. Choi is another golfer that you shouldn't keep you eye off throughout the round, like Angel Cabrera. He has finished in the top five through the last seven round in the Masters (including last year), has had a consistent play all tournament long, and looks like he's unharmed psychologically by Woods's charge.

3:09 p.m.- Over at ESPN.com's "Championship Chat," golf writer Jason Sobel is comparing Charl Schwartzel to 1987 Masters champion Larry Mize. Interesting. Then again, he has a point, as Schwartzel (like Mize) was an unknown by many heading into the week, and his confidence doesn't seem to be declining. Who knows, maybe it could be him defeating McIlroy and Woods out of nowhere later on.

3:10 p.m.- A birdie by Rory McIlroy at the seventh, giving him solo possession of the lead at -11 as Tiger Woods enters Amen Corner at the 11th (the hole where he has had the most problems during his career) and Charl Schwartzel heads to the ninth. Huge putt by McIlroy! Perhaps this will be the putt to knock the nerves out of his system.

3:14 p.m.- Another video! Here's the Tiger Woods eagle at the 8th hole about 45 minutes ago that put him at 10 under par:



3:17 p.m.- Woods attempts a long birdie putt at the 11th hole. He has only one birdie in his last 24 appearances at the 11th. If he makes this putt, I don't think that there's any doubt that he's going to win this.

3:18 p.m.- No birdie for Woods, but he still gets the important par putt to escape the 11th hole at -10. Now, he's heading into the 12th hole (the hole that Gary Player calls "the toughest par-three in all of golf"), while Schwartzel, McIlroy, Choi and Cabrera are at the par-five eighth.

3:22 p.m.- Interesting juxtaposition between final pair-mates Rory McIlroy and Angel Cabrera. McIlroy is as serious as he's been all week, while Cabrera is walking like he's taking an easy Sunday stroll. That man (Cabrera) is as cool as Mike in "Breaking Bad" whenever he's performing a task for Gus Frings. Has he ever been nervous, or is he just calm during majors when I can actually watch him?

3:24 p.m.- With all this talk about McIlroy, Schwartzel, Woods and Cabrera, I have forgotten to give credit where credit is due to the consistent play of Adam Scott. The man is now two back of McIlroy at -9, and has a good birdie opportunity to put him one behind. Scott, for all of you casual golf fans, was supposed to be the Rory McIlroy of five years ago. Instead, he has become just an average golfer, winning a few second rate tournaments but never winning one golf's biggest stage (with the exception of his Players Championship victory a few years back). Could this finally be the day that Scott proves his critics wrong?

3:25 p.m.- LIVE! blog JINX! Just as I talked at length about Scott for the first time today, he misses a very makeable birdie putt, and now remains at -9 as he makes the turn...

3:30 p.m.- Woods misses a very make able par putt at 12th to drop back to -9, very reminiscent of his questionable par putt miss at the 11th hole yesterday. Suddenly, with three hours past the start of this live blog, the leaderboard looks like this:
1. McIlroy: -11
2. Schwartzel: -10
3. Choi/Scott/Cabrera/Woods: -9

3:33 p.m.- Luke Donald, who has remained quiet for most of the day, makes a birdie to get him into the pack at -9. Meanwhile, McIlroy misses a birdie at the 9th hole while K.J. Choi hits a fabulous second shot at the ninth hole to set up a very easy birdie chance to get him at -10.

3:35 p.m.- You know something? The page length of this live blog has gotten pretty lengthy. I've decided to stop this by splitting this live blog into two parts. I hope you enjoyed these past hours, everyone. Now, come along with me to part two, won't ya!


Sincerely,
Your pal: mj15

TO READ PART TWO, CLICK HERE




If you have any opinions on today's post, or if you just have any suggestions or
tips for my next blog entry, e-mail me at: mj1599@aol.com. Your e-mails are greatly appreciated.