Masters playoffs unique

A LOOK BACK

36 HOLE

1935:

PLAYERS: Gene Sarazen and Craig Wood

HOW SARAZEN WON: In the tournament’s only 36-hole playoff, Sarazen won by five strokes.

OF NOTE: Sarazen made a double eagle on the par-5 15th to tie Wood and force the playoff.

18 HOLE

1942: 

PLAYERS: Byron Nelson and Ben Hogan

HOW NELSON WON: Nelson edged Hogan, 69-70, thanks to a fast start.

OF NOTE: Nelson won his second Masters against good friend and rival Hogan.

1954:

PLAYERS: Sam Snead and Ben Hogan

HOW SNEAD WON: Snead nipped his main rival, 70-71, in a memorable duel thanks in part to a chip-in birdie at No. 10.

OF NOTE: Snead became a three-time Masters champion and Hogan became the only player to lose two playoffs.

1962:

PLAYERS: Arnold Palmer, Gary Player and Dow Finsterwald

HOW PALMER WON: Palmer shot 68 to beat Player by three and Finsterwald by nine.

OF NOTE: Palmer claimed his third Masters victory in the tournament’s first three-man playoff.

1966: 

PLAYERS: Jack Nicklaus, Tommy Jacobs and Gay Brewer

HOW NICKLAUS WON: Nicklaus posted 70 to edge Jacobs by two shots and Brewer by eight.

OF NOTE: Nicklaus became the first champion to successfully defend his Masters title.

1970: 

PLAYERS: Billy Casper and Gene Littler

HOW CASPER WON: Casper used a hot putter to shoot 69 and win by five.

OF NOTE: Casper won the Masters in his 14th attempt, a record at the time.

1979: 

SUDDEN DEATH

PLAYERS: Fuzzy Zoeller, Ed Sneed and Tom Watson

HOW ZOELLER WON: After all three made pars on No. 10, Zoeller rolled in a short birdie putt on No. 11.

OF NOTE: Zoeller, a first-time competitor, won the Masters in the first sudden-death playoff.

1982: 

PLAYERS: Craig Stadler and Dan Pohl

HOW STADLER WON: He made par on
No. 10 after Pohl missed his 6-foot par attempt.

OF NOTE: It was the first one-hole playoff in Masters history.

1987: 

PLAYERS: Larry Mize, Seve Ballesteros and Greg Norman

HOW MIZE WON: After Ballesteros was eliminated on the first playoff hole, Mize made a 140-foot pitch shot for birdie on the second playoff hole, No. 11.

OF NOTE: Augusta native Mize was the underdog in this three-man playoff.

1989: 

PLAYERS: Nick Faldo and Scott Hoch

HOW FALDO WON: After Hoch missed a 2-foot par putt on the first playoff hole, Faldo made a 25-foot birdie putt on the second playoff hole, No. 11.

OF NOTE: Faldo shot 65 in the final round to get in the playoff.

1990:

PLAYERS: Nick Faldo and Raymond Floyd

HOW FALDO WON: He made par on the second playoff hole, No. 11, while Floyd found the water.

OF NOTE: Faldo, the only champion to have won two playoffs and the second champion to successfully defend his title, won on No. 11 again.

2003: 

PLAYERS: Mike Weir and Len Mattiace

HOW WEIR WON: Mattiace found trouble left of the green, and Weir needed only a bogey to win on the first playoff hole, No. 10.

OF NOTE: Weir, the first left-handed champion, got the title in the only playoff to be won with a bogey.

2005: 

PLAYERS: Tiger Woods and Chris DiMarco

HOW WOODS WON: He birdied the first playoff hole, No. 18.

OF NOTE: In the first sudden-death playoff to begin on No. 18, Woods became a four-time champion.

2009: 

PLAYERS: Angel Cabrera, Kenny Perry and Chad Campbell

HOW CABRERA WON: He made a par save from the trees on the first playoff hole, No. 18, and then won on the second playoff hole, No. 10, with par.

OF NOTE: In the first three-man playoff since 1987, Cabrera became the first South American champion.

2012: 

PLAYERS: Bubba Watson and Louis Oosthuizen

HOW WATSON WON: From the right trees, he hit a hook shot that found the green on the second playoff hole, No. 10. He two-putted for par.

OF NOTE: Watson became the third left-handed golfer to win the Masters.

2013: 

PLAYERS: Adam Scott and Angel Cabrera

HOW SCOTT WON: Scott rolled in a 15-foot birdie putt on the second playoff hole, No. 10.

OF NOTE: Scott became the first golfer from Australia to win the Masters.

PLAYOFFS AT THE OTHER MAJORS

U.S. OPEN

The U.S. Open remains the only major championship that uses an 18-hole format to break ties. The oldest American major briefly used a 36-hole format but reverted to the 18-hole format in the late 1930s. Ties after 18 holes were then followed by another 18, but since 1990, when Hale Irwin beat Mike Donald, sudden death has determined playoff winners in the case of another tie.

BRITISH OPEN

Golf’s oldest major championship now uses a four-hole playoff if golfers are tied at the end of regulation. The format was introduced in 1986 and first used in 1989. Previously, British Open playoffs were 36 holes until 1964, then changed to 18 holes until 1986. In 1989, Mark Calcavecchia won the first four-hole playoff against Greg Norman and Wayne Grady.

PGA

The PGA changed from match play to stroke play in 1958, and it used an 18-hole playoff to settle ties after 72 holes. The PGA of America decided after its 1976 tournament that it would use the sudden-death format, and in the late 1990s switched to an aggregate three-hole format for its playoffs. Tiger Woods defeated Bob May in 2000 in the first three-hole playoff.