By Rick Horrow and Karla Swatek
April 19, 2013
An incredible 2013 Masters tournament is in the books. TV ratings for the final round, which saw Adam Scott beat Angel Cabrera in a two-hole playoff, were up 26% over last year. For all of the talk this past weekend about Tiger Woods’ illegal drop, the real story coming out of Augusta was the clutch play of Scott, who became the first Australian to win the Masters since the tournament was first played 79 years ago. Scott’s victory is certain to have a strong impact on golf in his native Australia, possibly even similar to the impact Greg Norman had on golfers of Scott’s generation.
Scott also is expected to reap a sponsorship windfall thanks to the victory, the first major win in his thirteen-year professional career. He received $1 million in bonuses for winning from his current sponsors, Mercedes-Benz, Rolex, Titleist and Uniqlo. Uniqlo in particular couldn’t have picked a better time to partner with Scott, having signed him to a multiyear endorsement deal just days before the Masters began.
