Covid-19 robs Augusta Masters of taste and suspense

Since March and the announcement of the postponement to the fall, golf lovers wanted to believe in a Masters like any other.

There is no question of being demoralized by a lousy global virus.

The Masters institution boosted optimism: the venerable members of the Augusta National Golf Club, with their pockets swollen with tickets, would not be fooled.

Stronger than the Covid-19, the Masters Tournament would remain what it has been since 1934: the must-have for Grand Slam meetings, a benchmark on the planet of Golf.

Evidence

In this world of men who too often believe that they dictate their law to nature, we had to face the facts last week.

The 84th edition of the Masters quickly took on a different pace from its usual pace.

And this lasted the entire time of the test for those who remained glued to their screens, ready to vibrate as in the best hours.

From Tuesday evening, the dinner of champions lost its prestige.

He did not refuel.

Not only did the former winners descend from one floor to the clubhouse in order to respect social distancing, but in addition, they were only twenty-seven of the thirty-two guests who attended.

Several living legends of world golf had apologized as a precaution, preferring to remain confined due to their great age.

And it was not the menu concocted by Tiger Woods - steak fries, fajitas, sushi and sashimi - that was involved, but the coronavirus.

First lack of taste.

On Wednesday, the outright cancellation of the par 3 competition inaugurated in 1960 with a victory for Sam Snead, lifted the veil on a prejudicial absence: that of the public.

The Masters, without its famous “bosses” - as the ticket holders who keep their purchasing priority from year to year are called - has lost its flavor.

Its pretty little nine-hole course (par 27), a magnificent setting of colors and aromas in spring, no longer gave off any divine scent.

The beds of azaleas which flood the reflection of the water with their flowers, had disappeared.

The Augusta National GC seemed orphaned from the hearts that make it beat in early April.

Without magic.

Emptied of his soul

Moreover, on the eve of the tournament, the city also seemed very sad.

Emptied of her soul, in this tournament week, when she usually attracts all the crazies of the little white ball in the United States.

Not a redneck in the Washington Road Hooters parking lot, licking your oily fingers on fried onions.

No giant tent to get drunk a la Budweiser, where usually, on old Guns'n Roses standards, John Daly's hoarse and intoxicated voice late covers the hubbub of an audience overheated by naked waitresses.

Nothing.

Neither sound nor image.

From the early hours of the tournament, Thursday morning, everyone understood that the party would not be the one announced.

As the small hand of the Rolex clock pointed to eight and the bullets had been flying for less than half an hour, the rain kicked in. A fine drizzle which turned into a downpour in the morning. point of flooding the greens of the course, completely covering them with water ... The tournament was several hours late but, more boring, the organizers understood that their trademark had just taken a bit of slack.

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Around the world, the Augusta National GC is renowned for the speed of its greens, the “rolling” of which makes the best players in the world tremble.

The slopes mowed flush, on a fairly firm base, create unpredictable differences on the scorecards.

The greens give the Augusta Masters a unique dimension.

Waterlogged, they have been found to be more common.

With less relief.

The players were able to attack the flags without restraint.

And their bold pitches allowed the balls to glide closer to the holes, shortening the length of the putts and improving the stats for the first three days.

Dustin Johnson's impressive 1.5-putt per hole average on the first day of the tournament, may be questionable ...

Millions of dollars

Aware of the added value of their greens, the Masters organizers have invested millions of dollars for several years to equip them with an “anti-slowness” weapon.

An ingenious underground system developed by the company SubAir combines the functions of suction and ventilation, and allows the grass to be dried on demand.

In the surrounding silence, players would have heard it buzzing last week.

However, this was not reflected in the speed of their balls on the greens.

Except for the last day of play, maybe.

Would Tiger Woods have controlled the backspin differently on his approaches to the 12th hole, had he been aware of it?

The defending champion seemed to have been trapped by this unsuspected hardness on Sunday, when he drowned in the heart of Amen Corner.

Not chic.

In short, you understood it, even the card of the world n ° 1 Dustin Johnson, winner of his first Masters with a record score (-20), lost a little of its brilliance at the time of the final count.

The four cards under the 70s of Cameron Smith, his runner-up, too.

On Sunday, when the tournament was to get carried away in the 4th and final round, the Masters 2020 fell asleep.

This year, Dustin Johnson has numbed all his opponents.

And the viewers a bit, too.

By leaving no doubt about the final outcome.

The case was folded after the first nine holes.

Be careful, there is no question of denigrating the performance of this immense champion.

Nor to take away any merit from it.

But we can only regret that Augusta's green, carried proudly by the members on their shoulders, did not have quite the same content, nor the same background as usual.

From April to November, the Masters has lost none of its magic… Until it starts.

Basically, the tournament lost big in the fall.

This will have to be remembered if the 85th edition, scheduled for early April 2021, is again a victim of Covid-19 in the spring.

The organizers will know that the Masters risks once again losing some of its taste and its suspense ...