Jordan Spieth stunningly blew his chance to repeat as Masters champion on Sunday with consecutive bogeys on the 10th and 11th holes followed by a blooper reel-worthy quadruple bogey on the par-3 12th turned a five-stroke lead to a three-stroke deficit.
Where does it rank in the recent history of memorable sports meltdowns?
Here are the top 10 worst sports collapses of the last 25 years.
10. Jana Novotna, 1993 Wimbledon
Leading Steffi Graf 4-1, 40-30 in the final set of the 1993 Wimbledon final, Jana Novotna fell apart, losing five straight games — and the match 7-6 (8-6), 1-6, 6-4.
“I was very happy in the first few seconds after winning the match,” Graf told reporters. “And then I saw her. I’ve been there. All players have been there, and I really felt for her.” Novotna’s story has a happy ending: in 1998 she won Wimbledon.
9. 1999-2000 Trail Blazers
After building a 15-point fourth-quarter lead over the Lakers in Game 7 of the 2000 Western Conference Finals, the Trail Blazers went scoreless for almost seven minutes. Los Angeles stormed back to prevail 89-84 and went on to win its first title in the Shaq and Kobe era.
“We missed some shots down the stretch,” Blazer Rasheed Wallace bluntly said afterward. “Can’t do nothing about that, and it’s all said and done with now.”
8. 1998-99 Vikings
The ’98 Vikings, an offensive juggernaut led by rookie Randy Moss and rejuvenated quarterback Randall Cunningham, appeared to be on the verge of making the Super Bowl. But with his team leading 27-20 late in the NFC Championship against the Falcons, Minnesota kicker Gary Anderson — who hadn’t missed a field goal all season — botched a 38-yard try. On the ensuing drive, Atlanta tied it at 27, then proceeded to win 30-27 in overtime.
7. 1992-93 Oilers
By early in the third quarter of their Wild Card match-up against the Bills, the Oilers had built a 35-3 lead. Miraculously, Buffalo — led by backup quarterback Frank Reich — managed to come back and win 41-38 in overtime. The game became known as “The Comeback.”
Houston cornerback Cris Dishman, however, had another name for it. “It was the biggest choke in history,” he said. “Everyone on the team, everyone in the organization choked today.”
6. 2012-13 Maple Leafs
In 2013, the Maple Leafs led 4-1 in the third period of Game 7 of their first-round match-up against the Bruins. Then things went horribly wrong. Boston scored three straight goals — including two in the final two minutes of regulation–before winning 5-4 in overtime. The loss sparked some of the saddest, most hypnotic fan reaction videos of all time.
5. Greg Norman, 1996 Masters
At the 1996 Masters, the Shark managed to lose a six-stroke, final-round lead to Nick Faldo. “I am a winner,” Norman unconvincingly quipped afterward. “I just didn’t win today.” So sadly iconic was Norman’s collapse that footage of it is seemingly shown whenever another golfer is melting down in historic fashion.
4. Jean Van de Velde, 1999 British Open
All Jean Van de Velde needed to win the 1999 British Open at Carnoustie was notch a double bogey on the 18th hole. In a scene reporters compared to the climax of Tin Cup, the Frenchman could only muster a triple bogey. He then lost to Paul Lawrie in a four-hole playoff.
Somehow, Van de Velde escaped with his sense of humor in tact. “Don’t be so sad,” he told reporters. “I made plenty of friends because a Scottish man won.”
3. 2003 Cubs and Red Sox
By blowing their respective league championship series in 2003, the Cubs and Red Sox ruined a chance at what certainly would’ve been one of the most gripping World Series of all time. It’d take too long to rehash all of the details here, but merely mentioning Steve Bartman or Grady Little still annoys the hell out of folks from Chicago and Boston.
2. Jordan Spieth, 2016 Masters
How excruciatingly painful was Jordan Spieth’s collapse at the Masters? Just look at how Stephen Curry reacted to it.
1. 2004 Yankees
Blowing a 3-0 ALCS lead? To the Red Sox? Even in hindsight, it doesn’t seem possible. In fact, such a collapse was unprecedented. But it happened. And it all began with a single stolen base.
