The 2014 Masters is in the books. Bubba Watson, the 2012 Masters champion, won his second green jacket in three years on Sunday by fending off 20-year-old Jordan Speith. With Woods sidelined and Phil utterly out of contention by day two, this years Masters seemed as if it was going to be rather uneventful without golfs’ two giants. However, as Watson took the field by storm, swinging out of his shoes with his pink-shafted driver, Bubba Golf, as it is called, captivated Masters viewers everywhere, leaving Woods and Phil as a mere afterthoughts. Even though Bubba stole the show with his awing drives, clutch putts, and charismatic personality, the 2014 Masters provided a look into the future to golf without Tiger. And, besides to those Tiger crazies, it did not disappoint. It allowed popular and exciting youngsters like Speith and Rickie Fowler to take some of the spotlight and prove to the world that golf can be exciting without some of its bigger names in contention.

Speith’s storyline was especially enticing as he was trying to become the youngest ever winner at Masters. Speith showed incredible poise for a 20-year-old and even though he failed to capitalize on Sunday, shooting three over on his last eleven holes, he play an outstanding four rounds of golf and should be proud of himself. It’s also crazy to think that Speith has barely scratched the surface in terms of his potential. I don’t want to compare him to a young Tiger Woods, for that is simply unfair to Speith, but there are a lot of similarities between the two at this stage in their careers. Don’t be surprised to see Speith in contention in the next major and probably for the next ten to twenty years. In a time when golf is getting a makeover without Woods, similar to  when the NBA lost Michael Jordan to baseball for a year, its great to see players like Speith, Fowler and especially Bubba take advantage of the big stage and make golf fans throughout the world excited for what the future has in store.

With that being said, this weekend was really all about Bubba and his utter dominance off the tee. I thought Watson put on one of the better displays with the big stick that I can remember in Masters history. Not only hitting fairways, but the incredible distance Bubba had allowed him to play the course unlike any other playing in the field, approaching the majority of the greens with a short iron. By winning his second green jacket in three years, Bubba became only the eighth player in history to do so, joining some of greats like Woods, Mickleson and Nicklaus. Bubba started off the year the way he planned and could be in for a great year. As long as he’s got the pink driver for him, don’t be shocked to see Watson atop the leaderboard on Sunday at the U.S. Open in June. 

Contact Kevin Mahoney at [email protected].