FROM THE ARCHIVE MONDAY, APRIL 14TH 1997: Dermot Gilleecewas at Augusta to report on and profile, as a 21-year-old phenomenon called Tiger Woods left an indelible mark on one of the great majors 

IN THE chill of evening, as fresh winds brushed the pines of Augusta National, Tiger Woods realised his destiny yesterday by becoming the first black player to win the US Masters. And as we watched a record-shattering performance, there was an awareness of something very special – of a talent that may not be matched for another generation.

If admiration is to be measured by the status of the admirer, then Jack Nicklaus captured the essence of an astonishing achievement. “Tiger is out there playing another game,” said the six-times winner of this title. “He’s playing a golf course he’ll own for a long time.”

One suspects he will also retain possession of some remarkable scoring figures. As if playing to order, he sank a four-foot par putt on the last green to card the 69 he needed for an 18-under-par aggregate of 270 – one stroke inside the target set by Nicklaus in 1965 and matched by Raymond Floyd on the old Bermuda greens 11 years later.

His 12-shot margin over second-placed Tom Kite, was also a record – three strokes better than Nicklaus managed 32 years ago. At 21, he became the youngest winner of the title, surpassing the achievement of 23-year-old Seve Ballesteros in 1980. And, of course , he is the first black winner of a major championship.

On a broader basis, the only player to surpass his margin of victory was Old Tom Morris, and that was way back in the 1862 British Open, which he won by 13 strokes. More realistically, in the four majors this century, nobody has secured a margin in double figures.

Only in tearful hugging of his father and mother, who greeted him in his moment of triumph beside the 18th green, did we suddenly realise he was little more than a boy, but an exceptional one. The moment was especially emotional for his father Earl, whose recent heart by-pass surgery preluded him from following his son out on the course.

“It was an amazing week for me,” said the new champion. “I knew my game was ready when I shot a 59 last week. I have never played an entire tournament with my A-game, but this was pretty close, if you exclude the first nine holes (on Thursday). My dad said last night that I was facing probably the toughest round of my life, but that if I played it well, it would be the most rewarding.”

As to his status as the first black winner of the title, he said: “I’m pleased about that, but I wasn’t the pioneer. Charlie Sifford, Lee Elder and Terry Rhodes – those guys are the ones who paved the way for me to be here. If it wasn’t for them, I might not have had the chance to play golf.”

Meanwhile, it was a desperately disappointing outcome for Europe’s leading challenger, Costantino Rocca, who battled bravely to hold onto his second place, only to see it all slip away at the end of the round. With Kite having taken over second on six under par ahead of him, Rocca attacked the pin on the 17th, 26 yards in and only four yards from the back of the green. .

Even with a wedge, it was fraught with danger. In the event, he overshot the green and ran up a bogey. And with a share of fourth place beckoning, he slipped further adrift at the 18th, which he three putted for another bogey and a round of 75. Up to those last two holes, he had borne up remarkably well to the pressure of partnering Woods.

But there were other, admirable European performances, even if there was never a chance of adding to their haul of 10 titles since 1980. Among them was a closing 70 from England’s Lee Westwood, who will be 24 later this month. On his Masters debut, Westwood survived the horrendous start of double-bogey, bogey on Thursday to eventually earn the reward of partnering Nicklaus on the final day. “It was nerveracking to play with such a hero of mine,” he said.

Then there was the closing 69 by another debutant, Per Ulrik Johansson , who captured the Smurfit European Open at The K Club last September. He secured an aggregate of 287 by carding four birdies in the last six holes.

But the most significant European move came from twice former champion Bernhard Langer. With a run of three birdies from the seventh, Langer reached the turn in 33 strokes to be one under par overall. He then went on to collect expected birdies at the 13th and 15th on the way to a closing 68, which gave the German an aggregate of 286.

Towards its glorious climax, the final round became a victory march for Woods. But he admitted afterwards that his favourite stretch in golf, Augustas treacherous back nine, remained a menacing prospect, even though he covered it in a record 16 under par over the four days.

“I had to get through Amen Corner (11th, 12th and 13th holes) on even par – and I did them in two under,” he said. “Those holes can hurt you in a heartbeat. In fact I knew I couldn’t relax until I got past the water holes.”

It had been a decidedly edgy outward journey in which, after chipping and sinking an eight-foot putt for a birdie at the long second, Woods carded his first bogey in 37 holes when he found a greenside trap on the fifth. Then came the re-emergence of the damaging hook which created so many problems on Thursday. He was in the, trees at the seventh for another bogey. Within minutes, however, it had become nothing more than a temporary scare. Like a high-wire artist, Woods, was throwing in the odd stumble, simply to enhance the excitement. From left of the green at long eighth; he played a glorious chip-and-run over the mound to within four feet of the target and sank the putt for a remarkable birdie.

The ship had been steadied again, mainly through some brilliant work with the blade, which saw him complete the four rounds without three-putting. And by the time he entered the fateful, final nine, Woods had regained total control of his game and the tournament. A 20-foot birdie putt found the target at the 11th and with a 10-stroke lead, the title was effectively his.

Fittingly, Elder, the first black player to compete in the Masters, was there to see his victory march. During an 85mph dash by car from Columbia, South Carolina, Elder was waved in by a state trooper. “What’s the rush?” Elder was asked. “I’m heading for Augusta National to watch Tiger Woods win the Masters.”

“Who’s Tiger Woods?” mumbled the trooper, as he wrote a traffic ticket. Even for this golfing Philistine enlightenment is at hand.

ON THE bleak, war-torn fields of Indonesia a quarter of a century ago, a Green Beret in the US army had a dream. Fighting alongside a South Vietnamese ally, who carried the sobriquet of Tiger, Earl Woods decided that if he ever he had a son, the boy would be named after his Asian friend.

Later, Woods returned to the US with a Thai wife, Kultida. And on December 30th, 1975, they had a son whom the mother called Eldrick. True to his dream, however, Earl insisted on adding the nickname of his old comrade.

So started the life in Cypress, California, of a player who is set to become the outstanding golfer of his generation. Indeed, his talent is such that sometime in the next century golf historians will probably be arguing whether Bobby Jones, Ben Hogan, Jack Nicklaus or Tiger Woods was the greatest player the game has seen.

And he has only recently come of age. “The public won’t let me act like a 21-year-old man,” he complained to Arnold Palmer, who simply smiled in response. No doubt Palmer’s mind flashed back 40 years to his first endorsement bonus of $5,000 and how modest it now seemed compared with the $60 million contracts signed by Woods.

Eventually, Palmer said to his young colleague: “How many 21-year-olds are in the position that Tiger Woods is in? Hey, that’s the price you must pay for the position you’re in, whether it be financially or as a champion. There has to be a penalty somewhere for all the nice things that happen to you.”

After Woods turned professional last August, it took him only a short while to recognise those penalties. Out came an advertisement from his main sponsor, Nike, with the highly controversial assertion that this three-time US Amateur champion could not play certain courses in his native country, “because of the colour of my skin”.

There were howls of protest from the American media and the advertisement was pulled. A month later, pleading tiredness, Woods thumbed his nose at the Fred Haskins Award, given annually to the top college golfer.

Further howls were followed by a change of heart: Woods accepted the award – several months later. Then, most recently, there was an eight-page story in GQ, an up-market, glossy American men’s magazine. It created another media storm over here, largely because of some decidedly tasteless jokes and uncomplimentary references to the opposite sex, attributed to Woods.

The front page of the magazine carries a photograph of Woods as the regular young business executive in a grey, single-breasted suit, grey silk tie and white shirt. Printed on it is: “The coming of Tiger Woods, sport’s next Messiah.”

Having read the piece, I can well understand how it would have hit some raw nerves.

There was further criticism of the fact that instead of making a public apology for the contents of the article, Woods bristled, claiming that the driver of the limousine in which the alleged remarks were made had surreptitiously taped this off-the-record material.

Meanwhile, Earl continued to supply the smoke and laser lights for the Tiger Woods experience, even to the extent of some decidedly odd outpourings. Such as his claim in Sports Illustrated a few months ago that his son “will do more than any other man in history to change the course of humanity”.

All of that, for the most part, is on the debit side of the Woods account, but the credit side is extremely formidable. As Tom Watson said: “He’s a boy amongst men and he’s showing the men how to play. He may be the type of player who only comes around once in a millennium.”

The talent is huge. Now, with a US Masters and three US Amateur titles to his credit, comparisons with the young Nicklaus are inevitable and entirely valid. The legendary Bernard Darwin described the embryonic Bear “as a tremendous player of the future who hits the ball in the old phrase, like a kicking horse”. Sound familiar?

The general view here this weekend was that for Woods to dominate the way Palmer and Nicklaus did, he couldn’t have made a better start than by capturing the Masters. Apart from being a celebration of spring in a magical setting, the Masters is a demanding test of talent and nerve.

A week after Tiger’s 16th birthday, Earl Woods arranged a few holes of golf with Greg Norman. The father took the view that it was critical for his son to see how the best golfers in the world handled themselves. He wanted his son to see a man at work. They met at Old Marsh GC, near Norman’s home in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida. There, the Shark had the unsettling experience of seeing the 10st stripling outdrive him, comfortably. At a certain par five, Tiger hit a two-iron second shot to 25 feet, just as be did to the uphill, 535-yard eighth here on Saturday.

Startled, Norman put away his three-wood and took out his two-iron – and managed to get inside the youngster’s ball. Ostensibly it was fun, but Earl Woods had other ideas.

So, it is no coincidence that Tiger is currently being managed by IMG’s Hughes Norton, who built a fortune for Norman during-the 1980s.

“Most recently, there was an eight-page story in GQ, an up-market , glossy American mens magazine. It created another media storm over here, largely because of some decidedly tasteless jokes and uncomplimentary references to the opposite sex, attributed to Woods.