Australian golf fans have been fascinated by the yearly tradition that is the US Masters, and for my generation, the man responsible for the early mornings in April in front of the television is Greg Norman.
My childhood memories of sport contain images of AFL, cricket and tennis champions. Players who had that special something that irresistibly drew people towards them and their sport.
Players who were not necessarily the best or most consistent at their craft, but could perform the amazing feats that captured the imagination of sports followers.
In my youth, there was no more charismatic figure in world sport than Greg Norman.
To follow Norman around Huntingdale during the Australian Masters – when this tournament was a top class world event – was an incredible experience.
It was very difficult to get close to the Great White Shark, such were the numbers that clambered to catch a glimpse of the man who was the No. 1 golfer for an incredible 331 weeks between 1986 and 1997.
He was the complete package.
An imposing figure, tall and broad shouldered, he strode around Huntingdale in his trademark Akubra as if he owned the place. And that wasn’t far from the truth, given he had taken the gold jacket six times.
He played golf his own way, a big hitter who believed in aggression at every opportunity, with a short game good enough to win two British Opens.
These attributes had all golf fans thinking that it was a matter of time before he was to triumph at Augusta, a feat that no Australian had managed.
And it wasn’t just die-hard golf fans, but all sports fan who became fascinated with Norman’s attempts to get over the line in the Masters.
The attention on Norman’s attempts to win tournament became almost bigger than the tournament itself, similar to the focus on Ivan Lendl’s attempts to win Wimbledon.
It is now folklore that it was not to be for either Lendl or Norman, despite numerous close calls.
Larry Mize’s chip-in in 1987 and Greg’s dramatic collapse in 1996 are painfully embedded in the minds of fans.
As Norman’s status in the game faded, the focus moved from why Greg couldn’t win at or Augusta to why no Australian has yet to don the green jacket.
Several have gone close, including Craig Parry, Adam Scott and Jason Day.
But for a nation steeped in golfing history, the Masters is a rare black spot on our country’s record.
This year, Scott and Day are once again leading the Australian charge, with Marc Leishman and John Senden completing a relatively small Australian contingent.
Scott and Day in particular have the ability to contend this weekend, as they did a couple of years ago when Schwartzel took the title.
And again, Australian’s will again tune in to the painfully US biased coverage from the early hours, hoping that when they wake that there will be an Aussie sitting near the top of the leader board.
These are great players, worth watching for fans of the game. But for Australians, the fascination with the Masters would not be the same without the drama and pain experienced when following The Shark.
Norman generated this interest without ever winning his holy grail. The only way to regenerate that feeling will be for an Australian to win.
The one who does will have a prime place in the history books, and this time without the baggage that Norman had to carry.
Outrageous from the Aussie at the Byron Nelson tournament!
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