Martin Laird will be hoping to be better prepared for any further Tiger Woods ‘insanity’ when he returns to Augusta National in April.
Scotland’s leading world ranked golfer made his Masters debut last year and it could not have been a bigger introduction to the year’s traditional Major than playing the final day in the company of the 14-Major winning Woods.
Woods and Laird started the final day at five under par in very hot and humid conditions but after the pair shook hands on the first tee that’s as close as Laird got to Woods.
The duo again shook hands some four-and-a-half hours later with Woods driving Augusta fans into a frenzy in posting a 67 and snatching the clubhouse lead on 10-under par.
Martin Laird looking to stand taller when he returns to Augusta National. (Photo - Fran Caffrey/www.golffile.ie)
In contrast, Laird’s first tournament appearance in the company of Woods was best forgotten with the Scot signing off for a 73 and ending in a distant share of 19th.
Woods was eventually bumped back into fourth place after South African Charl Schwartzel created Augusta history in birding his closing four holes and deny the Australian duo of Adam Scott and Jason Day who shared second.
However walking the famed cathedral like setting that is Augusta National on a Sunday afternoon for the first time in his career will long live with the Glaswegian born Laird.
“It was a pretty special day playing with Tiger,” said Laird in a press conference ahead of his up-coming defence of the Arnold Palmer Invitational.
“Augusta is going to be good any time, but playing in the final round on Sunday when Tiger’s making that charge up the leaderboard, it was definitely the most electric crowd I’ve ever seen.
“I mean, the atmosphere, probably the one thing for me was when he holed the eagle putt on 8, it’s probably the loudest I’ve ever heard a crowd.
“I stood on the back of the green waiting for him to hole out, and he had a three‑ or four‑footer for par.
“Just the explosion of noise when he made that putt was unbelievable. And after that, walking from 9 green to 10 tee, walking through 30, 40 yards of kind of a little narrow corridor of the crowd, I’ve never seen people go so mad at a golf tournament.
“It was insane!”
Laird’s win at Bay Hill was the second on the PGA Tour and it was a victory that secured him a first-ever Augusta National tee time.
And after progressing to the last eight of last week’s WGC – Accenture Match-Play Championship Laird is eager to again have the legendary Arnold Palmer shake his hand.
“I can’t wait to get back down there to Bay Hill,” he said.
“If winning is the best thing, then the next best thing is coming back to the tournament the year after you win. And especially to a place like Bay Hill with winning such prestigious events with Mr.Palmer there at the end and everything that goes on at the tournament surrounding him, it’s obviously such a special tournament.”
