Woods no master at coming from behind

AUGUSTA, Ga. -- On the 11th hole of an impossible Masters in which you had to be part snowman, part psychologist and part arborist because of all the errant shots bleeding through the foliage, Tiger Woods did something that was symbolic of his final day. In some ways, it symbolized a puzzling portion of his career.

Tiger Woods just couldn't find enough magic down the stretch on Sunday. (Getty Images)

One of Woods' shots landed snugly against a newly planted and gargantuan pine. Just seconds after striking the ball, his club smacked the tree hard and careened out of his hand. It bent in half. The club, not his hand.

The way Woods' day went at times -- he finished tied for second place with a topsy-turvy 3-over 291 -- he probably wanted to cut that tree down with a chainsaw.

Up and down he went until finally his chances were bent and broken like that club.

In the midst of the whispered commentary and pungent chill we may have all witnessed, again, in digital clarity with trumpets blaring, the flagrant flaw of an already historic great.

You cannot call someone who owns so many majors a choker. They do not use such verbiage in golf, particularly when discussing Woods.

Clearly, however, when it comes to majors, Woods is a front runner. There is little doubt about that. And what happened in this year's Masters confirms there is something wildly screwy in a Woods psyche often portrayed as unshakeable.

When experts and sports historians decode and rank the best golfers of all-time, they will have to figure in Woods' inability, at least thus far, to come from behind to win a major.

He is still likely the greatest ever, but some of his performances in these majors should cause everyone to take a deep breath and not be so quick to put Jack Nicklaus in second place just yet.

Woods should have won this tournament easily. There are no excuses. If we praise his awesomeness, we have to wince when he underperforms. And that is what he did -- he underperformed.

What Woods has to figure out is why. Should he do that, there is no telling how many majors he'll capture.

If Woods plays in a major and is leading, many times he will win. If he is trailing, he loses. Those things for now are as certain as raunchy Anna Nicole Smith coverage and the Coriolis effect.

Woods was asked by the media for perspective on a disappointing Masters on Sunday.