Zach's win: Where does he go from here?
Even several all-time greats were unable to win Masters
By RICK BROWN
REGISTER STAFF WRITER
April 16, 2007
Zach Johnson now has more Masters green jackets in his closet than Greg Norman, Lee Trevino, Hale Irwin, Tom Kite, Davis Love III, Johnny Miller and Lanny Wadkins combined.
That helps put Johnson's victory a week ago at Augusta in perspective. It was a victory that changed his status as a professional golfer forever, and begs this question:
Where does his career go from here?
"I have a five-year exemption (on the PGA Tour) and I can play at the Masters forever," said Johnson, an Iowa native and former Drake golfer. "I hope forever is a long time."
There are other perks. He's already got a spot in the Grand Slam of Golf in Bermuda Oct. 16-17. And he's punched his ticket for the 2008 Mercedes Championship in January, which starts the PGA Tour season with a field made up of the previous season's winners.
"All those perks are pretty awesome," Johnson said.
He's also sixth on the 2007 U.S. Presidents Cup standings and second to Tiger Woods on the 2008 U.S. Ryder Cup standings. He carries a Top 20 world ranking.
But will Johnson follow the footsteps of a Charles Coody or a Fuzzy Zoeller?
Coody won the 1971 Masters, his third career victory. He never won again.
Like Johnson, Zoeller's second career victory came at the Masters, in 1979. Zoeller won eight more times, including the 1984 U.S. Open, before taking his career to the Champions Tour.
A look inside Johnson's career points to a Zoeller-like future. The 31-year-old has improved each year, an unbroken rise up golf's ladder.
"It's the accumulation of a lot of hard work," said Iowa native Mike Bender, who now teaches out of Timacuan Golf Club in Lake Mary, Fla., and is Johnson's lead instructor.
Along with that hard work is the inner strength and confidence that success creates.
Ken Schall, who coached Johnson for a season at Drake and is now the head professional at Glen Oaks Country Club in West Des Moines, remembers playing a round with Johnson at Sunnyside Country Club in Waterloo on the eve of the 2001 Iowa Open.
"He shot an easy 64," Schall recalled. "Then he wins the Iowa Open by several shots. It was just amazing how well he played. I pulled him aside and said, 'Zach, you are one of the top 25 players in the world and you don't know it.' He laughed."
Johnson had missed the cut in his three previous major championship appearances before the Masters. Bender thinks the table was set for Johnson's Masters-piece at the 2006 Ryder Cup last September in Ireland.
"That was a whole turning point for Zach as far as handling the pressure," Bender said.
Johnson had a 1-2-1 Ryder Cup record, but he hit several clutch shots during the weekend in the face of intense pressure.
"I performed well at times in the Ryder Cup, and played poorly at times, but I think that experience has helped me a ton," Johnson said. "I think as time goes on, now I'm going to see how much it did help me."
Johnson's next major comes in the U.S. Open, to be played June 14-17 at Oakmont Country Club outside Pittsburgh, Pa. Johnson will tee off with some confidence in his bag.
"I'm going to draw back on this (Masters) victory, and the back nine on Sunday, for a long time," Johnson said. "The shots I hit, the situations I was in, the rhythm I was in, the pace I was in. All those things are going to help me down the road."
Only one man can win the Grand Slam this year, unlikely as that might be. His name is Zach Johnson.
"Those major settings are fun," Johnson said. "There's only four of them a year. I'm going to be pretty amped to get to the Open and play some major golf again. I look forward to Pittsburgh."
DesMoinesRegister.com
Even several all-time greats were unable to win Masters
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