The magic of Mize
Former Augusta resident recounts march to victory
Soon after Larry Mize won the 1987 Masters Tournament with his magical chip-in, he was approached by a golf publication with a request. It wanted Mize to re-create his shot for a photo shoot.
Mize declined then, and, 20 years later, he still hasn't reprised the 140-foot shot. He knows now that he never will.
"I didn't know how good a decision that was at the time," Mize said of turning down the magazine's request. "Hitting that shot again, it's a no-win situation, whether I pull it off again or hit it in the water."
Mize wants the only memory of the shot to be from his sudden-death playoff victory over Seve Ballesteros and Greg Norman.
"That will be the last time I hit that shot," said Mize, the only Augusta native to win the Masters.
Mize said he would pose for photos in the area where he hit the shot. The only problem with that is he doesn't know exactly where that is.
"I don't ever go over there," said Mize, who lives in Columbus, Ga.
"Over there" is well right of the 11th green, nearly in the fairway of the par-3 12th hole.
In the 19 Masters since he won, Mize has never hit a shot in that area and jokingly says that if he did, "maybe there would be a special drop for me."
Nor has he ever been there in a practice round. If he did, he says, he would move it away from that area.
In 1987, by the second hole of the playoff - No. 11 - Ballesteros had been eliminated with bogey on No. 10, and it was Mize and Norman, who was the No. 1 player in the world at the time.
On the par-4 11th, Norman outdrove Mize by 20 yards, meaning Mize was the first to hit his approach shot to the green.
To the left of the 11th green was water, which Mize wanted to avoid at all costs. He planned to hit a draw, which would bring the shot in with a right-to-left ball flight.
"It was one of those things where you want to hit that shot, but your mind is saying, 'Don't hit in the water.' I just bailed out. I knew if I hit it left, it was pretty much over," he said. "So I blocked it right."
Norman then hit his approach on the right fringe, almost in Mize's line. After Mize chipped in, Norman missed his birdie putt and Mize had won the 51st Masters.
Mize said the memories are "fresh, but not as fresh."
"I probably remember as much from seeing the replays on TV," he said.
"I can remember it, but it's not like it was yesterday. It's hard to believe it's been 20 years. It seems like it's been awhile, but not 20 years."
Other than the chip-in, Mize vividly remembers the 4-iron he hit for his second shot into the par-5 13th hole to set up a birdie, and the driver and 7-iron he hit into No. 18, which set up the birdie that earned him a spot in the playoff.
The closing birdie put Mize at 3-under-par 285 for the tournament, with Ballesteros and Norman still on the course.
"I knew I had to birdie No. 18 to have chance to get in the playoff," he said. "Jodie Mudd was already in the clubhouse with 2-under. I knew it would take at least 3-under."
Mize looks back on a bogey he made in the third round as a possible key to his victory. He had put his tee shot into the water on the par-3 12th, but wedged on and made the "10-foot-plus" putt for bogey.
"That put me 3-over for the day, but it was a very good bogey," Mize said. "I played 3-under from 13 on in to finish even par. I birdied No. 18 that day, and it was a really big swing for me, making up three shots on those last six holes. It was a huge confidence booster and gave me the momentum I needed going into Sunday."
Through 54 holes, Mize was tied for fifth place, two shots behind co-leaders Ben Crenshaw and Roger Maltbie, who were at 4-under 212. Norman and Bernhard Langer were at 213. Mize was joined at 214 by Ballesteros, Curtis Strange and Tze-Chung Chen.
"There's no doubt I kind of liked where I was," Mize said. "There were a lot of big names, and it was a wonderful scenario for me. I liked the fact I could fly under the radar a little bit. I do remember going to bed Saturday night feeling good about it. I liked my position. I definitely thought I had a chance to win the tournament the next day."
After Ballesteros three-putted No. 10 to fall out of the playoff, Mize said, the Spaniard made a point to wish him well.
"I want to say we shook hands. I know he came over and wished me luck. He was very nice," Mize said.
In the years that followed, Mize said, Norman "never said a word" about what happened that day in Amen Corner.
Mize was 28 at the time of the Masters victory. Since then, he has contended at Augusta National only once, in 1994, when Jose Maria Olazabal won the first of his two green jackets.
Mize shot 68-71-72-71 that year to finish third, three shots behind Olazabal. Mize's 282 total was three shots lower than his winning score in 1987.
"I told some people I might have played better that year than I did in 1987," Mize said. "I didn't make the putts coming down the stretch. Jose made the putts, and (runner-up) Tom Lehman and I didn't. But it's always fun contending at Augusta."
Since Mize's victory, Augusta National has changed dramatically. It is 520 yards longer, rough has been grown and trees have been added on various holes to make them tougher.
About the only similarity from then to now is that "the holes are routed the same way," Mize said.
"It's a different golf course than when I won."
The added length has hurt Mize, who has never been known as a long hitter. Yet, after 155 yards were added in 2006, Mize shot 75-72 to make his first cut at Augusta National since 2000. He shot 77-72 on the weekend to finish tied for 42nd.
"I still think I can win it; I'm going to work hard and try to win it 20 years later," Mize said. "I've got to bring my A-plus game to that thing; I've got to bring all of it. I'm trying to pick up a little more yardage off the tee. That would be a tremendous help. I'm a stubborn old thing. I'm showing up ready to go. I'd love to give you a good story."
Mize said he wishes he had had more success on the PGA Tour the past 19 years (he has won twice since his Masters victory, but hasn't had exempt status since 2002), but it has allowed him to watch his three sons grow up. David is 20 and a junior at the University of Georgia, Patrick is 17 and Robert is 14.
"I'm very thankful for the Masters victory, for the golf opportunities, for the financial rewards, for the opportunity to share my faith in Jesus, for my career," said Mize, who has four career tour victories. "It has enabled me to be at home more, and I'm very thankful for that."
"I think he's had a wonderful career," said Mize's wife, Bonnie. "Oftentimes I ask him, 'What were your goals when you started? Were you hoping to win a tournament?' I think he's far exceeded his goals."
Mize has been inducted into four sports halls of fame - the Georgia Golf Hall of Fame, the Georgia Tech Hall of Fame, the Chattahoochee Hall of Fame and the Georgia Hall of Fame.
"When he receives those honors and they list his accomplishments, you realize just how much he's done," Bonnie said.
In late 2008, Mize will turn 50. He plans to play the Champions Tour, where the shorter courses will suit his game better than those on the PGA Tour. He hopes to get in 12 to 15 PGA Tour events this year on sponsor exemptions, not counting the Masters, where he has a lifetime invitation. He also will play on the Nationwide Tour.
"I know the Champions Tour is there, and I'm looking forward to it," Mize said. "My focus is playing good and contending on the PGA Tour."
Reach David Westin at (706) 823-3224 or david.westin@augustachronicle.com.
