What Lincoln is Thinkin’ - Masters Recap

What Lincoln is Thinkin' - Masters Recap

Kenny Perry is known as the "everyman" golfer. After blowing a two stroke lead with two holes to go in the 2009 Masters, Perry called himself average.

"It seems like when it comes down to those deals, I just can't execute," Perry said. "Great players make it happen, and your average players don't. I'll look back the rest of my life, and wonder what could've been."

There were many things that made the 2009 Masters memorable - a three player playoff, a late Phil Mickelson charge, and Angel Cabrera winning his second major.

But all that seems secondary to the 48 year old Perry, who became the tournament's third most favorite player. While Mickelson and Tiger Woods made their late charge that came up short, the fans packed the final few holes after the dynamic duo were finished, to cheer on Perry. He's become popular for winning small tournaments, and being a face of the 2008 Ryder Cup winning American team. The majority of fans at Augusta National wanted to see Perry win his first major, and become the oldest golfer to ever win the Masters.

But after going bogey-free for 22 consecutive holes, he blew up on the final two, and gave away his lead.

"All the big stars make it happen." Perry added. "That's why they are where they are, and we are all way down here."

Angel Cabrera, meanwhile, just stayed solid down the stretch. Reminiscent of his US Open victory at Oakmont, when he held off Tiger Woods and Jim Furyk by a stroke, Cabrera stepped up to the pressure, and made the shots when he had to, especially a phenomenal second shot on the second playoff hole.

And Perry, who had gone mistake-free for almost four days, started yanking shots all over the place. The Kentuckian who had so much poise, lost it on both playoff holes, when he missed badly on both approaches into the green.

Perry said all week that he had all ready accomplished everything he wanted to accomplish. That last year's Ryder Cup was "the frosting." That while he really wanted to beat the field, he wasn't putting a lot of pressure on himself to win this tournament. But as he walked down to the 16th green, (back when he was up by two strokes), his eyes started welling up with tears, overcome by the standing ovation that he was receiving. You might wonder if that was the moment that it did dawn on him - that he was two holes away from putting his name among the greatest golfers ever to play the game. Because for 70 holes he had played like he deserved to be among those greats. But for the next four holes, he just played average.

Perry can take solace that he wasn't alone. Chad Campbell, the third man in the playoff, put his second shot in the sand on the first playoff hole, then missed a 7 footer to keep him alive for the championship. Another player, the first round leader, who had played a great four days of golf. But when it came to crunch time, when it came to make-it-great time, Campbell couldn't handle it.

But once again, this weekend was not about Campbell, or Cabrera for that matter, it was about Perry. The man with the ugly swing. The man who looks like your uncle. The man who had a green jacket on his back, and let it slip away.

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