COLUMN: Joe Hawk

     Charlie Baron has been attending the Masters every year since 1979, an annual pilgrimage to what he calls "one of the most special events in all of sports."
      This year, though, it was even more special.
      "You know, this time all the flowers had already bloomed," Baron says of the pastel-colored azaleas that have become synonymous with the tradition-rich Augusta National course.
      Then he pauses.
      "All but one flower, that is," he adds, suddenly waxing poetic. "The final flower bloomed after the first nine holes Thursday."
      As with everyone in the professional golfing world today, Baron, who serves as tournament manager of the Las Vegas Invitational, is talking about Tiger Woods, the newest member of the Masters' elite green-jacket fraternity. But Baron's words carry more pride than most others because it was at his $1.65 million event in October that Woods, then age 20, first won as a professional.
      Earl Woods may be Tiger's proud papa, but Charlie Baron feels a like kinship. His tournament gave birth to the now-21-year-old wunderkind's current supremacy in the sport.
      "It was nice to have our tournament get that kind of mention in the newspapers and local media down there," Baron says of the Georgia-based event. "... Whatever success Tiger has in his career -- and right now I would say it is limitless -- people will always note that it began with the LVI."
      You can almost see Baron's chest swell as he speaks.
      It certainly swelled as he watched Woods master the Masters' field over the weekend. Not only did Woods become the event's youngest winner and its first minority champion -- he's of African-American and Thai descent -- he set the tournament on its ear with how easily he won.
      Woods' 72-hole score of 18-under-par 270 was the lowest ever at the Masters, and his 12-stroke margin of victory over runner-up Tom Kite also was a record.
      Remember, all this happened after Woods, who failed to make the cut as an amateur last year, opened with a 4-over 40 on the front nine in Thursday's first round.
      Baron, for one, hasn't forgotten.
      "You kind of kept your eye on (his name) on the scoreboard while he played the front nine (Thursday), but then the electricity really picked up when he shot 30 (6 under) on the back nine," Baron said. "After that, there was a different feeling in the air -- like this kid is on a roll now.
      "I was fortunate to be in Lake Placid (N.Y.) when the Americans beat the Russians (in ice hockey in the 1980 Winter Olympic Games), and that's the closest I can come to describing the feeling."
      Baron contends you could see an unflinching focus take over the young superstar as he approached each shot en route to playing the final 3 1/2 rounds at 22 under.
      "It was like the playoff he was in (at the LVI) last year," Baron says. "His shoulders were straight, not slumped, and his eyes were focused on the ball and where he wanted to hit it."
      Ah, yes, the playoff on Oct. 6, when Woods' professional success first bloomed, under sprawling desert skies at the Tournament Players Club in Summerlin. After firing an 8-under 64 in the final round to recoup four strokes and assume a share of the lead, Woods beat Davis Love III par-to-bogey on the first sudden-death hole to capture the $297,000 first prize.
      The victory, before a final-round record 25,000 spectators, came in just his sixth PGA Tour event.
      Now, after competing in only 10 Tour events since, Woods is the Masters champion and -- who could argue to the contrary? -- the sport's best player.
      What will that mean as far as Woods' anticipated return to Las Vegas and defense of his LVI title Oct. 22-26? Will the young champ, who skipped some early Tour events this season to compete overseas, forget his pro roots?
      Baron is confident Woods will be back to defend, "although, typically, he doesn't commit publicly until 90 days before an event."
      Before this season, however, Woods penciled in the LVI and Disney Classic as two stops he would make in 1997. He won the Disney Classic two weeks after winning the LVI last fall.
      "Hopefully, Las Vegas will be a long-standing stop for him," Baron says, the pride again building. "Just his presence is an awesome feeling. He has unbelievable talent, and he's an incredibly nice young man."
      One any PGA Tour event manager wouldn't mind having as a favorite son, if only for one week.
     
      Joe Hawk's column is published Sunday, Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. He can be reached by e-mail at Joe_Hawk@lvrj.com.