Masters Tournament: The ten best players in Augusta National history
By Bill Felber
8: Tom Watson – 1975-1999, (1977, 1981), -12.90
Watson was regarded as an up-and-coming tour pro when he debuted with a tie for eighth in 1975. Two years (and one British Open championship) later, he beat third round co-leader Ben Crenshaw and held off Jack Nicklaus down the stretch to win by two.
Watson inherited the lead when Crenshaw bogeyed two of the first three holes, ran off four consecutive front nine birdies, and broke a tie with Nicklaus with a birdie at the 71st hole.
His second victory, in 1981, was another case of hanging on to the finish. One stroke ahead of Nicklaus entering play Sunday, he birdied the second and eighth, leading by three at the turn. Then Nicklaus made his charge, moving within two thanks to birdies at 13, 15 and 16. But Watson turned in a solid 1-under par round, finishing with pars on the final two holes to win by those two shots.
Like Palmer, Watson’s career record at Augusta was impeded by a sting of sub-par finishes toward the end of his professional lifespan. From 1992 through 1999, Watson missed the only three cuts he ever missed in 25 Masters appearances during his prime.
Even so, Watson’s record is exceptional. In addition to his two victories, he recorded runner-ups in 1978, 1979 and 1984. Watson lost the 1978 event to Player by one stroke, and lost to Fuzzy Zoeller in a playoff in 1979, coming as close as Palmer had between 1960 and 1962 to winning three straight.