Win is on Australia's horizon
Nine are eager to be first champion
It's supposed to happen one day. An Australian is going to win the Masters Tournament.
There are too many talented Australians -- nine in the 2008 Masters field -- for the country not to break through at Augusta National Golf Club.
"You've got a lot of guys out here on tour who are Aussies and really good players," said Aaron Baddeley, one of them. "I definitely think it will happen sooner than later."
"I'm hopeful that it's a story that gets to happen in my career, and hopefully, it's me," Stuart Appleby said.
Of the Australians in the field, three are in the top 20 in the Official World Golf Ranking and the others are in the top 60.
"For the longest time, there were only two or three Australians in the field," said Aussie Geoff Ogilvy, who won the CA Championship in late March. "Now we've got a few more guys. Just by numbers, your chances go up."
Ogilvy's win put an end to Tiger Woods' victory streak that dated to Sept. 3, and it will make Ogilvy one of the favorites to challenge the No. 1 player at the Masters.
Ogilvy is joined in the Masters field by fellow countrymen Baddeley, Appleby, Adam Scott, Robert Allenby, Nick O'Hern and Masters rookies John Senden and Richard Green.
"It will happen at one point. It might not be the next three years; it might be 20 years, but it's going to happen," Ogilvy said of an Australian donning a green jacket. "Someone is going to have a good week in April one day."
Appleby was that someone last year, at least for three rounds. After rounds of 75-70-73, he was the 54-hole leader. He shot a final-round 75 and finished in a tie for seventh place.
"I'd like to win any of them (major championships), but certainly the Masters, being a bit of a ghost town for Australia, would be good," Appleby said.
Bruce Crampton, Jack Newton and Greg Norman are the highest-finishing Australians in tournament history. Crampton tied for second in 1972, and Newton was the runner-up in 1980. Norman finished second three times (1986, 1987 and 1996) and was third the same number of times (1989, 1995, 1999).
"Greg was so close so many times that Australians sort of feel, not that they're owed one, but everybody would be pretty happy if an Australian won," Ogilvy said. "A lot of Australia feels like Greg got a bit unlucky a couple of times."
Said Baddeley: "Everyone expected Greg Norman to do it. Everyone is very surprised he didn't do it. It was one of those things that didn't happen, unfortunately."
Despite the talent, Australians have finished in the top 10 only four times since 2000. Aside from Appleby last year, Mark Hensby and Rod Pampling tied for fifth place in 2005 and Scott tied for ninth place in 2002.
"If you look at the courses we grew up on and you look at Augusta, it's the most similar to the ones we grew up on," Ogilvy said. "It's kind of weird that we haven't done any good."
Last year, Ogilvy led the field in birdies with 16, but he also had more "others" -- holes with scores higher than double bogey. Ogilvy had three of those, including a nine on No. 15 in the third round that led to 81. He still tied for 24th place.
When an Australian does win, he will be celebrated far and wide down under.
"It's going to be a big deal for that person, being the first person," Baddeley said. "There can only be one first person. It's going to be great."
The country will be bursting with pride, too.
"I imagine it will be huge," Appleby said. "Geoff winning the U.S. Open a few years back was massive, so I imagine it will be at least that."
"It will be big for golf in Australia," Ogilvy said. "That's got an extra thing because we haven't won it. The majors seem so far away from Australia, not only in distance but just in scale. It's hard to imagine something like the Masters when you're in Australia. If an Australian wins it, that would be massive."
Reach David Westin at (706) 823-3224 or david.westin@augustachronicle.com.
