PGATOUR.com's Ross: 1997 was more than a coronation

When Tiger Woods announced to the world that he had arrived with an historic 12-shot victory at the Masters, his win did more than create a lasting memory. It was a matter of pride to everyone who shared his skin color.

Helen Ross, PGATOUR.COM Chief of Correspondents

AUGUSTA, Ga. -- In 30 years at the Masters, I have been treated to heart-wrenching losses, think Greg Norman; up-lifting comebacks, witness Jose Maria Olazabal; emotional liberation, remember Ben Crenshaw; and several breakthrough wins.

Oh, and one coronation.

That happened in 1997 -- and the events that transpired that momentous and mesmerizing Sunday have an interesting parallel to those currently unfolding at the Augusta National.

Tiger Woods was 21 then, more gangly than ripped as he is now, and playing in his first Masters as a pro. He opened with a 70 that left him fourth, then seized a lead he would not relinquish  with a 66 in the second round.

Woods' stranglehold increased with a 65 on Saturday and when he won on Sunday, he did so by a record 12 shots. But it wasn't the separation from his peers that was so historic -- and as it turned out, prophetic, it was the venue and the veneer Wood's win shattered that day.

With its sprawling, white antebellum clubhouse and genteel ways, the Augusta National was in many ways a symbol of the Old South. The club had no black members at the time, but plenty of African-Americans worked there as caddies, waiters, cooks and the like.

When Woods teed off that Sunday, everyone knew history was going to be made. And when he finished off that round of 69, those same employees, the ones who shared Woods' skin color, rushed out of the clubhouse and cheered with the green-jacketed members they worked for as a black man turned this vestige of the Old South upside down.

The scene outside the clubhouse was similar on Thursday of this week as the game's No. 1 player returned to the game for the first time in five months, this time seeking redemption and recovery rather than a career-defining win.

The patrons, clearly still smitten, turned out in abundance to see Woods strike that first tee shot. His return to competition was as historic as that first victory, and we'll know Sunday whether his Green Jacket collection will grow.