Adam Scott regains confidence with wins leading into Masters

The words “desperate” and “relevant” are not what you expect to hear from the 2013 Masters champion and former No. 1 player in the world.

Adam Scott, however, used both regarding his nearly two-year victory drought approaching the end of February.

The 35-year-old Australian felt desperate to win to maintain his relevance among the new wave of young superstars dominating the majors since his 10-week turn at No. 1 in 2014.

Those concerns were put to bed with consecutive victories at the Honda Classic and World Golf Championships-Cadillac Championship in the six weeks before the Masters Tournament.

“I want to feel somewhat relevant still out here when it comes to being one of the best players in the world,” said Scott, who climbed back into the top 10 with his victory over Sergio Garcia at PGA National and up to sixth after his dramatic win at Doral. “That’s just down to my results. There’s no other way. You can talk it in your head and try and build yourself up as much as you want, but at some point, you’re going to have to have the results to actually prove it and achieve.”

It isn’t like Scott had fallen off the map. He’d fulfilled a lifelong goal by claiming the No. 1 world ranking with his win at Colonial in 2014.

But 2015 was a rebuilding year of sorts for Scott. He became a father, changed caddies and spent much of the year trying to transition from his trusty broomstick to a conventional putter before the anchoring ban went into effect Jan. 1.

“The results were frustrating yes,” Scott said of the past year. “There was a lot of stuff generally every other couple of months, there was some significant change and I just didn’t get everything lined up last season very often like you would hope. Whether it was a caddie change or a family change with having a baby, or equipment change. There were a lot of things that are not excuses but just part of the process. Now I think I’ve got all those things in a much better place, cemented, and I can just go ahead and work.”

Not that 2015 didn’t have its highlights. Scott tied for fourth at the U.S. Open and made a final-round charge before fading to 10th at the British Open. But the consistency that marked his player-of-the-year season in 2013 wasn’t there.

He found that consistency again when he committed to his new putting stroke at the Presidents Cup, piling up top-10s around the world including runner-up finishes in Malaysia, Australia and Riviera.

“I think (Riviera) was a great test and the field was very strong and I prepared the best I could for it and came up with four solid rounds which is what you’re looking for at the big events like the majors,” he said. “So I’m very happy with where everything’s at right now. But I have to start again and try to compound my good play into consecutive weeks to really get the confidence to build.”

He accomplished that at PGA National and Doral, putting on a ball-striking clinic that allowed him to overcome a quadruple bogey late Saturday and still win the Honda and then a pair of double bogeys and a six-shot deficit in the final round at the World Golf Championship event.

“That was certainly a sense of relief to win again, after being a year and a half I guess without a win,” he said. “I think it’s just getting tougher and tougher to win out here.”

That has certainly been the case with Jordan Spieth, Rory McIlroy, Jason Day and Players champion Rickie Fowler hogging the limelight. Scott’s restoration of confidence comes at the right time to challenge the new “Fab Four.”

“It’s amazing in a couple weeks how quickly things turn around,” Scott said. “I’ve played really well the last couple of weeks, and a couple of those guys who were so outstanding last summer haven’t played that great in the last couple of weeks. You know, you feel like the gap is really not that big at all.

“So you’ve got to keep some things in perspective and not get panicky. But I know my window is much smaller than Jordan, Rory, Rickie, Jason and a whole list of other good, young players. So I can’t afford to sit back and just wait for it to happen. I’ve got to keep working on making it happen.”

There’s no better place to start than Augusta National, where he will reunite with veteran caddie Steve Williams. The two parted ways last year, but Williams will work with Scott again at the majors and other selected events while David Clark will handle the WGCs and all of the rest.

“Obviously Steve and I have a great record in the big events over the last few years and we both feel like there’s a little unfinished business,” Scott said. “We’ve got a great record and won the Masters, but we both feel like we should have won more majors. For us to win another one would kind of validate our time together.”

His pair of wins in Florida reinforced Scott’s confidence in his trajectory toward the Masters.

“Hopefully I haven’t peaked too early,” he said. “I know how to use the confidence of a win early in the season better now with my experience. … I just want to do everything to keep that there.”

No longer desperate or worried about his relevance, a more confident Scott isn’t ready to concede the green jacket to the youngsters.

“I feel like I’ve got everything balanced up again now and there’s no reason why I shouldn’t prepare like I have in years previous and be a real threat around there,” he said of Augusta. “I’ve won it. The confidence is there. I’ve got nothing to lose and everything to gain. I want to be in the conversation come Sunday.”