Despite the absence of the man who has defined golf over the last decade and a half, 2011 was a barnstorming year of golf. We were treated to some of the finest displays by the top guys on tour throughout the year as well as an unprecedented number of breakthrough wins. Despite infinite highs during the season the golfing world also experienced a terrible loss, following the tragic passing of the legendary Seve Ballesteros.

One could argue that Tiger’s absence made the game more exciting as rookies one left, right and centre and the battle for the world number one spot raged on right through the year with not just two, but four or five guys scrapping it out to reach the summit of the golfing world. However potentially the greatest golfer to ever play the game was never far from the headlines and typically he had to have the last laugh by winning his first event in two years at the Chevron World Challenge.

As golf fans look forward to 2012 where we will hopefully see a resurgent Tiger take on the ‘new breed’ for the first time, we take a look back at the good, the bad and the ugly from 2011.

Best Golfer: Luke Donald

26 events played…20 top 10 finishes…4 wins and topping the money list on both sides of the pond is impressive by anyone’s standards and arguably this is the closest thing we have seen to a Tiger-esque season since Mr Woods himself fell from grace. All Donald needs now is a major win…bring on 2012!

Best Tournament: The Masters

Although the US Open and the Open Championship ran it close this year, The Masters simply can’t be beaten for sheer excitement when the big boys are rounding Amen Corner and coming down the home stretch.

First we had Tiger’s front nine charge…then we had Rory McIlroy’s meltdown – which admittedly was hard to watch – but what followed was one of the most exciting finishes to any tournament we have seen in years. At various stages it seemed as if Woods would win – and he would have if his putter had behaved – and then a whole host of players made their move including the likes of Donald, Adam Scott and Jason Day before, ultimately, Charl Scwhartzel stormed home with four closing birdies to claim his first major.

Augusta National still serves up the thrills and spills like no other and we expect the 2012 Masters may just be the standout tournament of the next twelve months as well.

Best Shot: Rory McIlroy

Following his spectacular collapse at the Masters just a couple of months earlier it would have been understandable for the young Ulsterman to fade away after a strong start to the US Open. However McIlroy remained in tip top shape and went into the final round with a commanding lead.

Arriving on the 10^th tee McIlroy must have had flashbacks to Augusta. After all the 10^th tee is where it all went wrong for him then. This time however Rory hit a towering iron shot over the water to the par 3 green and upon pitching 12 feet past the pin the whole world held its breath as the ball trickled slowly back towards the hole. It would eventually come to rest just inches from the hole and set up a tap in birdie to extend his mammoth lead even further. That shot was the moment when the golfing world – and probably McIlroy himself – really started to believe he was going to push on and claim what could well be the first of many majors.

Best Round: Lee Westwood

Westwood has a reputation for not playing to his full capabilities in the final rounds of tournaments…especially the majors! That proved to be the case a couple of weeks ago when he won the Nedbank Challenge…that win was courtesy of a stunning 3^rd round score of 62. While 62s are a semi-regular occurrence on the pro Tours Westy’s was something special. During the entire round the Englishman barely missed a fairway – some feat when you consider he hits it more than 300 yards on a regular basis – and his approach shots rarely ended up more than 10 feet from the pin. A red hot putter completed the recipe and one of the most proficient rounds of golf in the last few years had been completed. Although it perhaps wasn’t the most exciting round – with monster putts, outrageous escape shots and holed out shots from the fairway – it was one of the finest displays of ball striking witnesses in recent memory.

Oh…and Westy topped it recently with a stunning 60 in Thailand. His caddy, Billy Foster, had described ithe 62 as the finest round of golf he had ever seen and following his round today the Englishman said it was good to see he was improving!)

Most shots off the Handicap: Sergio Garcia

When he burst on to the scene at the 1999 PGA Championship, Sergio Garcia had looked like the man most likely to overhaul Tiger Woods.

The Spaniard, however, lost his considerable passion for golf and over a period of time he plummeted from second place in the world rankings to way outside of the top 50. During that time, he went into self-imposed exile from the tour and considered quitting altogether. Now the passion is back and following two consecutive wins in recent weeks Sergio fans will be looking forward to 2012. Perhaps his appearance as a non-playing member of the 2010 Ryder team inspired his comeback…perhaps it was the passing of the legendary Seve Ballesteros…whatever the reason, it’s fair to say the world of golf is glad to see him back.

Most shots added to handicap: Ernie Els

There was once a time when ‘The Big Easy’ was the man most likely to knock Tiger off his perch but when any player starts to struggle on the greens it is difficult to finish at the right end of the leader board. That is what Els found out the hard way during a year that saw him sink so low that he resorted to using a belly putter! He also fell out of the top 50 in the world rankings, had just one top 10 finish and missed a string of cuts. Fingers crossed the big man from South Africa will have a better time of things in 2012!

Team of the Year: Walker Cup

Nigel Edwards and his team were largely written off before the 2011 Walker Cup had even begun. The much fancied USA team included the likes of the top ranked amateur in the world, Patrick Cantlay, and were, in many people’s eyes, were a shoe-in for the win. However on the rugged links of Royal Aberdeen, the Great Britain and Ireland team emerged victorious in a closely fought battle.

Biggest Talking Point: Belly putters vs Tiger Woods

The hot debate over the legality of long putter, belly putters in particular, raged throughout 2011, especially after Keegan Bradley became the first player ever to win a major using one of the so called ‘cheating sticks’. At first only the odd one or two would pop up in professional tournaments. Unfortunately 2011 saw them becoming more and more popular and at one point seven PGA Tour events in a row were won by players using long putters. The rules of golf state that a player must only have two points of contact with the club…somehow the R&A and the USGA haven’t realised that the anchoring a putter to your body means there are three points of contact with the club…hopefully it won’t be long before they do! Let’s hear it for those players like Lee Westwood who’d rather sort out their putting problems the traditional way, through hard work and dedication, rather than reaching for a crutch that should never have got past the lawmakers.

I’m not a celebrity…get me out of here! Steve Williams

Steve Williams has been the most famous caddy in the world for years. The only reason for this is his former employer! Following the high profile sacking of Williams by Tiger Woods the big kiwi acted more like a big melon following Adam Scott’s win at the WGC Bridgestone Invitational. Williams claimed the win – which was obviously all down to him – was more satisfying than any win he and Tiger achieved in their 13 years together. That’s hard to believe considering Tiger won 13 of his 14 majors – and countless other events – with Williams on the bag. To make things worse there was his, what many perceived to be racist, outburst at a celebratory dinner where he said he wanted to shove the WGC win “right up that black a******”. Stay classy Steve…stay classy.

Poor Etiquette: John Daly

At this year’s Australian Open the infamously hot-headed John Daly got a little bit frustrated when he was informed he had just played the wrong ball from a greenside bunker, which of course resulted in a two shot penalty. On the very next hole Daly proceeded to hit all 6 of the remaining golf balls in his bag into a water hazard which prompted him to walk off the course! A little consideration for his playing partners should have been on the cards but for Long John the thought of his Diet Coke stock in his hotel room was just too much!

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