It helped that the people who run the tight ship at Augusta National ordered enough water to fill the ponds on the 15th hole poured on the greens to soften them up. They also made sure the Sunday pins were in such a spot that balls could funnel to the holes.

The players had been careful all week not to criticize the course, afraid perhaps that their playing privileges might be revoked mid-tournament. But they finally seemed to get the message that this was not the kind of course Jones would have wanted his name attached to.

A back nine that bordered on unplayable the day before was there for the taking. Balls that bounced over greens on Saturday now settled softly next to the hole, and Woods was able to pull off the shot of the day when an iron to the 13th backed up some 40 feet down the hill and finished within kick-in distance.

“They gave us a break, which was nice,” Woods said. “And gave us a chance to go out there and score.”

Woods didn’t take enough advantage of that chance, but the patrons in their folding chairs got the kind of Sunday they’re used to, topped off by a near hole-in-one by Justin Rose on No. 16 that made things interesting for a bit just when everyone thought it was over.

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The ending was anticlimatic, with Woods never coming close to making birdies on the final two holes to force a tie. Even before Woods hit it into a greenside bunker on the 17th hole, Johnson was kissing his infant son and accepting the congratulations of everyone around him.

It was hardly Mickelson leaping for joy after getting his first major or Woods tearfully winning one for his father.

There might, in fact, never be a quieter or more unassuming winner than the self-described “normal guy” from Cedar Rapids, Iowa.

Mr. Excitement, he’s not. But at least there was some excitement Sunday on the back nine, where this year the Masters really did begin.

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