AUGUSTA — Masters golf champion Bubba Watson said he had never even dreamed of winning the tournament following his dramatic play-off victory over Louis Oosthuizen.
American Watson (33) beat his South African rival on the second extra hole to secure his first major title.
“I’ve never had a dream go this far, so I can’t really say it’s a dream come true,” said the unorthodox left-hander, who has never had a lesson. “I dreamed about it. I just never made the putt. As a golfer, this is Mecca.”
Watson, who became the eighth consecutive first-time major winner, added: “This is what we strive for, to put on the Green Jacket, to win golf tournaments.
“I don’t even know what happened on the back nine. I know I made bogey on 12 and then I birdied four holes in a row. Nervous on every shot, every putt. Went into a play-off.
“I got in these trees and hit a crazy shot that I saw in my head, and somehow I’m here talking to you with a Green Jacket on.”
Watson, playing alongside Oosthuizen in the penultimate group, fired four birdies in a row from the 13th to join the 2010 Open champion on 10 under, but missed a birdie putt to win in regulation.
Having both parred the first extra hole, Watson, who lost a play-off for the PGA Championship in 2010, looked to be in trouble when he found trees off the 10th tee.
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But while Oosthuizen was unable to find the putting surface with his second, Watson pulled out an extravagant hook to find the centre of the green.
“The first time I ever worked with my caddie, Boston, six years ago, I told him, ‘If I have a swing, I’ve got a shot’,” said Watson, who recently adopted a baby boy with wife Angie.
“So I’m used to the woods. I’m used to the rough. We were walking down and I said, ‘We were here already. We hit it close here already today’, because I was in those trees.
“I got there. I saw it was a perfect draw, a perfect hook.”
Oosthuizen’s chip ran to the back of the green and he took two more to get down for a bogey, leaving Watson with two putts for the title.
“As of less than two years ago, I didn’t have a win,” he said. “Now I’ve got four. My goal, my dream has always been to have 10 wins. This is a step in the right direction. I watched it as a kid, watched it growing up. At the University of Georgia, we talked about this tournament.” — BBC Sport
