2026-04-11 11:32:21
Danny Willett has recalled “shaking like a dog” before playing the final hole at the 2016 Masters.
The English golfer triumphed at Augusta National a decade ago after capitalising on Jordan Spieth’s meltdown and admits the prospect of winning the Green Jacket dawned on him prior to his 72nd hole of the tournament.
Willett told bunkered magazine: “To be able to look up and it’s literally straight down the middle… I watch golf tournaments week in, week out. I watch when people win. I watch when people lose.
“People don’t always hit great shots down the stretch. Someone else messes up, which in my situation, I got that olive branch earlier on in the round.”
However, Willett takes pride in the way he pounced on Spieth’s collapse to claim his first and only major title to date.
He said: “I looked down the stretch there and I didn’t really put a foot out of place on the back nine. You’ve got to be in the right place at the right time and you’ve got to then have the ability to jump on it and take advantage.”
Willett also has fond memories of the “chaotic few hours” that followed his victory, which included celebrating with football legends Sir Alex Ferguson and Alan Shearer.
He recalled: “I was still wired. I think we got to bed by three in the morning. I got up at seven and went for a run. I wasn’t even hungover. I was still drunk. I just had so much adrenaline that I didn’t know what to do.
“We were flying that afternoon at five o’clock. I had interviews all morning. I don’t think I look great. Apart from the fact I had a jacket on, so that was alright! But I was gone. I still hadn’t fathomed what happened.”
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