England's Danny Willett wins The Masters after Jordan Spieth meltdown at Augusta
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Updated 11/04/2016 at 06:23 GMT
Danny Willett won The Masters by three shots with a final round 67, finishing on five-under-par, after Jordan Spieth suffered an astonishing meltdown.
Danny Willett celebrates in the green jacket after winning the 2016 The Masters golf tournament at Augusta National
Image credit: Reuters
The 28-year-old Englishman was in contention at the start of his final round at Augusta and fired a flawless 18 holes of golf that included five birdies and not a single dropped shot.
However, it took a dramatic collapse from defending champion Spieth to let Willett in. The leader going into the final round, Spieth drained four consecutive birdies from the sixth to storm to the turn at Augusta National with a five shot lead.
However, bogeys at the 10th and the 11th saw the pressure build on the young American as he stood at the tee on the tricky 12th.
Two dips into the water later and Spieth’s day had fallen apart.
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Jordan Spieth reacts as he waits to putt on the 18th green during the final round of the 2016 The Masters golf tournament at Augusta National Golf Club.
Image credit: Reuters
The 22-year-old managed to pull himself together for the final six holes, but Willett didn’t falter.
And the Englishman celebrated as he learned of his victory while on the phone to his family.
He became only the second Englishman to win the coveted Green Jacket, following three-times champion Nick Faldo, and ended a barren title run by Europeans dating back to Spaniard Jose Maria Olazabal's second victory here in 1999.
"It's been crazy," Willett, 28, said before being helped into the coveted Green Jacket by last year's champion, Spieth. "You can't really describe the emotions and feelings.
"We all go out there and try and play good golf and at the end of the day someone's got to win the golf tournament. Fortunately enough, today was my day," added 2007 English Amateur champion Willett, who is the son of a vicar.
"It was tough. Every time we seemed to make ground, Jordan kept pulling ahead. And we were just trying to dig in and dig in ... trying to make birdies and birdies. It was just a very surreal day when you look back at the ebb and flows."
Willett's participation at this year's Masters had been in doubt last month with his wife scheduled to give birth on Sunday, but their baby boy Zachariah arrived 12 days ago.
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Danny Willett waves to the crowd after completing the 18th hole during the final round of the 2016 The Masters golf tournament at Augusta National Golf Club.
Image credit: Reuters
"He came early ... to let me play," Willett smiled. "You talk about fate ... it's just been a crazy, crazy week."
A tied-sixth finish at last year’s Open was Willett’s previous best finish in a Major and he becomes only the second Englishman in history to be presented with the green jacket, joining three-time winner Nick Faldo.
The American world number two had stormed five strokes in front with nine holes to play and victory seemingly assured when he bogeyed the 10th and 11th before running up a nightmare seven at the par-three 12th.
"It's tough, it's really tough," Spieth told CBS Sports about his stunning three-hole collapse, his voice cracking with emotion. "Pretty sure I'll be disappointed with that one.
"Just put a bad swing on it right at the wrong time. Just compounded mistakes. Just lack of discipline. A very tough 30 minutes for me that hopefully I will never experience again.
"I had my 'B minus' game tee to green, and I made up for it around the greens with my putter," said Spieth. "Ultimately you just have to have your 'A' game every single part, and I just didn't have those iron swings, as it showed on the back nine."
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