Tiger Woods - AP / Charlie RiedelGolf was certainly interesting in 2009 with some great play, great tournaments, several near misses by big name players, and some minor scandal that you probably haven't heard of.
Here is a look back on some of the top moments and tournaments of 2009.
Majors:
Masters: Angel Cabrera
Kenny Perry had tournament locked up until bogeying the final two holes and losing in a playoff.
U.S. Open: Lucas Glover
Former #1 David Duval came out of nowhere to contend but a triple bogey on the final day cost him.
British: Stewart Cink
Tom Watson, 59, almost became the oldest player to win a major. The five time champion bogeyed the final hole in regulation, and then lost in a playoff.
PGA: YE Yang
Yang held off Tiger Woods and became the first player ever to defeat Woods when he led going into the final round of a major.
- Tiger came back from knee surgery and an eight month layoff to win seven times worldwide. Woods won the Fed Ex Cup for the second time, won PGA player of the year, the money title, the scoring title, and was named AP athlete of the decade.
- Phil Mickelson won four times in 2009, defeated Tiger at the HSBC, and finished second in the Fed Ex Cup race despite his wife and mother being diagnosed with breast cancer.
- Rory Mcllroy, Danny Lee, Ryo Ishikawa, and Rickie Fowler all jumped onto the scene as the top young golfers in the world
- The United States defeated the International team 19 1/2 to 14 1/2 at the Presidents Cup
1 Tiger Woods USA
2 Phil Mickelson USA
3 Steve Stricker USA
4 Lee Westwood England
5 Padraig Harrington Ireland
Complete list
Obviously, the biggest story of the year in golf is the saga of Tiger Woods, which we have all heard more than enough of. Who knows when this will ever calm down and who knows if Tiger will ever be the same on the course if and when he returns.
For those of you of want more Tiger, click here for a variety of articles about his 2009 season, including his tournament play, awards, and the ongoing scandal.
