The Masters: Ranking the 25 most exceptional performances at Augusta
By Bill Felber
14: Bernhard Langer, 1993 Masters, 277 (-11), Std. Deviation -2.45
Already the 1985 champion, Bernhard Langer nonetheless was probably best known to American golfers for his performance at the 1991 Ryder Cup. Faced with a six-foot putt on the final hole to win his singles match with Ray Floyd, Langer missed. The resulting tie denied Europe its chance to tie the U.S. at 14 match points apiece and returned the Cup to the U.S. for the first time since 1983.
At Augusta, Langer opened with a solid 68 that left him tied with Ray Floyd and John Huston one stroke out of a five-way tie for the lead. As the field spread out on Friday, he held that margin, this time with Dan Forsman behind Jeff Maggert, who shot a 67.
On Saturday Langer demonstrated the consistency that made him a consistent contender. While other challengers fell back, his 69 matched the day’s low round and left him four shots ahead of Chip Beck and Dan Forsman.
Beck made a few brief runs on Sunday, his front nine 33 moving him within two strokes of the lead at the turn. But Langer, who registered an even par 36 on the front, settled the issue with a perfectly struck 3-iron over the pond at 13 leading to an eagle. That re-established his lead at three and when Beck missed a birdie putt at 14 Langer was all but officially home.
His birdie at 15 created the final four-stroke margin.