Scottie Scheffler's dagger to Cameron Smith as Tiger Woods makes horror history at Masters

Cameron Smith's hopes of a late charge to Masters glory fell short on Sunday (Monday morning Aussie time) as Scottie Scheffler won his second green jacket in three years. The World No.1 fended off all his challengers, closing with a four-under-par 68 to secure a commanding four-stroke victory at Augusta National.

The American is the first player since Tiger Woods 23 years ago to win the Arnold Palmer Invitational, Players Championship and Masters in the same season. Scheffler also joins Tiger as the only player in golf history to win the US junior amateur championship and multiple Masters titles. At age 27, Scheffler is is the fourth-youngest man to win multiple green jackets behind only Woods, Jack Nicklaus and Seve Ballesteros.

Smith had to settle for a fifth top-10 finish at the Masters after the green jacket once again eluded the Australian star. Smith threatened to produce a final-round charge with a spectacular hole-out eagle on the par-5 second in his final round.

But for the second day in a row he couldn't buy a putt and had to settle for multiple pars that could easily have been birdies. The Aussie didn't grab a single birdie on Sunday and had a run of 13 pars in a row, finishing with a 71 on Sunday and tied for sixth overall at two-under. His latest top-10 finish comes after his tie for fifth in 2018, a runner-up showing in 2020 - when he became the first player ever to register four rounds in the 60s - a joint 10th in 2021 and equal-third in 2023.

Tiger Woods makes brutal history but impresses at the Masters

Woods won plenty of admirers at the Masters despite recording the highest 72-hole score of his career to finish dead-last among those who made the cut. The 48-year-old managed to complete all four rounds at Augusta, but walked off the course with a 16-over 304 after a battling final round of 77.

Woods' previous highest total over four rounds was 302 at the Memorial in 2015 following a career-worst 85 in the third round. He has only finished above 300 one other time at the Masters - two years ago when he shot 78-78 on the weekend and finished on 301.

But the five-time champion still received rapturous applause in rousing scenes on Sunday. The 48-year-old, who is still dealing with the effects of numerous surgeries that have impacted his body, received a massive roar from the crowd as he pitched close to the hole on the 18th to end with a par.

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Sadly, Woods was in last place among the 60 players who made the cut when he finished his final round. The only other time he finished in last place was in the 2020 Genesis Invitational at Riviera.

Nevertheless, Woods took plenty of positives from his performance and is eyeing the other three majors in 2024. “It was a good week. It was a good week all around,” he said. “I think that coming in here, not having played a full tournament in a very long time, it was a good fight on Thursday and Friday. Unfortunately, yesterday it didn't quite turn out the way I wanted it to.

“I think that just the wind and what it was doing out here to the golf shots and the balls and putting, how difficult the course was playing, it doesn't take much to get out of position here. Unfortunately, I got out of position a lot yesterday and a couple times today.”

Tiger Woods came crashing down in brutal third round

One day after creating history by making his 24th consecutive cut at the Masters, Woods came crashing back down to earth in the third round. The 48-year-old was hoping to break Jack Nicklaus' record as the oldest winner of the green jacket, but saw his hopes extinguish on Saturday as he set an unwanted piece of history.

Woods insisted he could challenge for a 16th major title after playing 23 holes at Augusta on Friday, but the gruelling nature of the tournament got the better of his battered body on Saturday. Woods slumped to a third round score of 82, or 10-over-par, to leave him 11-over in total and 18 shots back from the leader and World No.1 Scottie Scheffler.

The third round nightmare for Woods represented his worst ever score in a round at the Masters - a full four shots worse than the 78s he shot in the third and fourth rounds of the 2022 tournament. Woods' participation in 2022 was nothing short of a miracle though after the car crash the previous year that threatened to end his career.

Golf world saddened by historic Tiger Woods struggles

The sad reality for Woods is that this was just the fifth time he's shot a round in the 80s as a professional, and only the third time in a major. Concerned fans admitted it was "tough to watch" him struggling, with with veteran American golf commentator Butch Harmon insisting the 48-year-old will be "very upset" with his round.

“We know when he teed off he thought he had a chance to move up this leaderboard," Harman said. “I think playing 23 holes yesterday had to put some wear and tear on his body. Still, to have Tiger over the weekend at The Masters is what we’re looking for. It’s a pleasure to have him back.”

with agencies