Charl Schwartzel refuses to let go of the green jacket heading into the second major, The US Open
Charl Schwartzel, the reigning Masters champion, has seen life switch on to an altogether different gear after his legendary win at Augusta this April, but what his fans have missed considerably in all this time, is to see Schwartzel take off his green jacket and opt for something else for a change.
Schwartzel’s paranoia with the coveted Jacket, a souvenir from the Masters, has seen him flying across the world, attending press conferences, showing up at tournament inaugurations from Asia-pacific to the US. The green jacket with the Masters emblem on it barely fits Schwartzel’s skinny posture and at times it appears as if the champ has actually borrowed it from his dad.
“It’s wearing the green jacket. That’s the coolest thing,” he said on Tuesday at the Congressional Country Club, the venue of the 111th US open. “It travels with me wherever I go. We only get to keep it for a year and then you leave it in your locker. So instead of leaving it say in South Africa and only seeing it every two months, I go home about every two months, what’s the point of that? So I just travel with it every week. I see it every day. You obviously don’t put it on every day, but you see it and sometimes you just stare at it for a while.”
Schwartzel’s victory at the Masters came out to be a surprise for many of the blazing guns on the field who have been eyeing the most celebrated title of the sport. Northern Irishman Rory McIlroy slumped to a 80 on the final round, giving an opportunity to the fast approaching contenders to make their move.
Coming into the final round with a four shot deficit from the lead, Schwartzel went over to pull in a birdie and a stunning eagle on the third hole to push for contention for the top slot. He closed his round with four consecutive birdies on the final holes to clinch the title. The golfer's final-hole birdie spree is unprecedented in the history of the tournament. Schwartzel became the third South African to win the title after Gary Player and Trevor Immelman.
But apart from all the laurels he might have earned for his stellar victory, his obsession with the green jacket, which hardly fits him, barely makes any sense. Schwartzel, no matter where he is and no matter what might be the occasion, will always greet his guests and fans with a wide-toothy grin and, of course, the green jacket.
The 26-year-old South African is currently ranked number 11th on the world golf rankings and is hoping to bring his Masters melodrama to the Congressional’s tough Blue Course. He attributed his Masters success to Jack Nicklaus’ eleventh hour tips which had a phenomenal impact on his performance in the tournament.
Schwartzel has been consulting his countryman and two-time US Open winner Ernie Els of how to tame the 7,574-yard Blue Course in order to win his second major.
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