Olazabal master stroke blazes the greens

Just when it looked as though Norman might finally redeem himself from three past failures at Augusta National by making a 9-metre (30-foot) eagle putt on the 13th hole to take the lead, Olazabal rammed home a birdie putt to tie.

The rest of the day belonged to the 33-year-old Spaniard, who did not make a bogey over the final 13 holes. He finished his 1-under 71 with a 1.2-metre (4-foot) par putt and pumped his fist.

“When I was at my lowest, I never thought about this happening again,” Olazabal said. “I thought I would never play golf again. To stand before you in a green jacket is an achievement I didn’t even think about.”

Then he covered his face and wept.

“I will embrace my family, for sure,” he said between sobs.

He won by two strokes over Davis Love IIIwith an 8-under 280, the highest winning score in the Masters in 10 years.

The cheers belonged to Norman. As usual, so did the groans.

“This wasn’t nearly as shocking as his collapse in 1996, when Norman squandered a six-stroke lead to Nick Faldo in the final round. Norman simply didn’t make the shots that Augusta requires of its champions on the final holes.

Norman three-putted from 12 metres (40 feet) off the fringe for a bogey on the 14th, then effectively ended his chances on the par-5 15th, when his sand wedge shot from 90 meters (98 yards) away missed its target by 12 meters and he took another bogey.

Olazabal closed it out in fashion with a 1-metre (3-foot) birdie putt on the 16th, then two more pars in which his brilliance with the short game was on display.

The limp gone, he marched up to the 18th green to a gallery that finally gave him his due.

“I reached a point that I really had serious doubts about not just playing golf but the quality of my life,” Olazabal said. “To be here atthis moment, it’s very emotional.”

Norman, who missed most of last year because of a shoulder injury that required surgery, had to take yet another walk up the final fairway, waiting for someone else to be crowned once again.

“I said to myself, `it could have just as easily been me,”’ Norman said.

Olazabal is the 11th European winner in the last 20 years and now has as many green jackets as his mentor, Steve Ballesteros.

Norman, playing in the final group at a major championship for the eighth time, shot a 73 to finish third at 283. Bob Estes and Steve Pate were another stroke back.

David Duval had the best round of the day, a 2-under 70, and was in a large group at 285 that included Nick Price, Phil Mickelson and England’s Lee Westwood.