PGA TOUR rewind: Counting down the top stories of 2021 (5-1)

While 2020 was a more unprecedented year in terms of the COVID-19 pandemic and its lingering effects on the schedule, 2021 will be remembered for its performances, controversies, memes, celebrations, and so much more.

It wasn't only a Ryder Cup year, it was also an Olympic year. Fans returned to the galleries, rivalries were created, and records were broken.

Here are the top five stories that defined the golf world in 2021.

5. Take a bow

To most American golf fans, Hideki Matsuyama is one of the most gifted ball-strikers in the game and a mainstay in the World's top 20. Yet in his native country of Japan, Matsuyama is so much more.

While the 2021 Masters may not have provided as many indelible on-course moments as other majors, what Matsuyama accomplished on Sunday at Augusta still felt grander in scale.

In 2011, a baby-faced 19-year-old earned low amateur honors at the Masters. Ten years later, he slipped on the green jacket. As soon as the final putt dropped, Matsuyama's caddie Shota Hayafuji bowed to the course.

Hayafuji later told The Caddie Network via email, "My heart was full of gratitude, and it was the natural thing for me to bow and show respect to the Masters. I was saying, 'Thank you very much!'"

In Japan, bowing before leaving the field is actually a common gesture of respect. Hayafuji's bow was one of the sport's rare moments that felt bigger than golf, and it made for one of the most lasting images of the year.

4. Golf's strangest rivalry

Whether it's Lakers-Celtics or Red Sox-Yankees, rivalries are an essential part of sports. Unfortunately, golf has always lacked in this area - until now.

The friction between Brooks Koepka and Bryson DeChambeau dates all the way back to early 2019, when Koepka, a notoriously fast player, indirectly called out DeChambeau for his pace of play.

"I just don't understand how it takes a minute and 20 seconds, a minute and 15 to hit a golf ball ... it's not that hard," Koepka told Michael Weston on the Golf Monthly Clubhouse podcast.

Over the next two years, a number of smaller, petty incidents stoked the fire, but the rivalry escalated at the 2021 PGA Championship.

A leaked Golf Channel interview was an undeniable turning point. A perturbed Koepka couldn't even finish his thought when DeChambeau walked behind him.

Tensions rose in anticipation of the Ryder Cup, as it was unclear whether the two superstars would be able to put their hatred aside for the sake of a common goal.

Surprisingly, the Ryder Cup proved to be a bonding experience. As the old saying goes, "Winning cures everything." The teammates infamously hugged it out in a boozy post-victory press conference.

Just weeks after the beatdown at Whistling Straits, it was announced Koepka and DeChambeau would be squaring off in the fifth installment of The Match. The news felt somewhat anticlimactic, as it appeared the duo had squashed their beef at the Ryder Cup. Yet in pre-Match interviews, it became abundantly clear that tension still existed.

Both players discussed how the hug was forced, and DeChambeau even said, "It's disgusting the way the guy has tried to knock me down."

A cynic might view this as a master class in marketing, but The Match still provided one of the more entertaining afternoons in golf.

"We settled it," Koepka said after a dominating victory.

Whether there's still bad blood between the two remains to be seen, but we must admit we enjoyed the drama.

3. Beatdown on Lake Michigan

With a 3-9 record over their last 12 Ryder Cup appearances, the United States entered this year's showdown at Whistling Straights reeling. Despite consistently possessing a talent advantage, the Europeans had their number.

Team Europe seemed to understand the team chemistry aspect of this competition, while the United States was wrapped up in individualism.

Or so they said.

Once again, the United States had a much stronger team on paper, featuring 11 of the top 15 players in the world. Yet history has shown that match play is a much different game, and the Europeans have displayed a specific affinity for this event and format.

When the American team hammered the Europeans 19-9 in record-breaking fashion, it felt like a new era had been ushered in. The Americans featured six Ryder Cup rookies, who combined for a 12-2-2 overall record.

Even more surprising than the domination was the chemistry the Americans were able to channel.

How Brooks Koepka and Bryson DeChambeau would fit together on the same team was the elephant in the room. Would they actually be able to put aside their personal differences for the betterment of the team?

The answer was a resounding yes. Team Captain Steve Stricker even mentioned in his post-round press conference that Brooks and Bryson offered to team up as partners.

This was the first American Ryder Cup team since 1993 that didn't feature Tiger Woods or Phil Mickelson. Yet with 11 of 12 players on the squad under the age of 32, we can safely say American golf is in good hands.

2. The ultimate showman

At the ripe age of 50, Phil Mickelson was still good for the occasional low round or highlight-worthy flop shot. Yet most golf fans had come to the conclusion that his best days on the PGA TOUR were behind him.

For the 2021 PGA Championship at the 7,876-yard Ocean Course at Kiawah Island, the 300-1 long shot was an afterthought.

A solid opening round left him three back. Tied at the halfway point was a nice story. Still, most weren't believers.

Yet when the 45-time PGA TOUR winner took the lead heading into the final round, the possibility of crowning the oldest major champion ever began to crystallize.

It all seemed for naught when Brooks Koepka produced a two-shot swing on Sunday's opening hole, but Lefty persisted.

What seemed like the entire state of South Carolina swarmed the six-time major winner as he walked down the 18th fairway, producing one of the most indelible moments not just of the year, but in golf history.

With the victory, Mickelson broke the record for oldest major championship winner previously held by 48-year-old Julius Boros at the 1968 PGA Championship. Mickelson joined a club of just 14 other golfers to win six major championships.

Mickelson's most endearing quality has always been his ability to keep us on our toes. Is he a coffee salesman? The next face of a Saudi Golf League? Social media influencer? Champions Tour bully? The heir to Jim Nantz?

Well, he's also a 2021 major winner.

The golfing legend hadn't posted a top-10 in a major in over five years, and his victory at the Ocean Course was his only top-10 of the entire season. Yes, golf is weird.

1. 'Making progress'

One three-second video was all it took for Tiger Woods to catapult himself to his rightful place at the front of the golf world.

The infamous video sent the golf world into a frenzy about Woods' impending return to competitive golf. Although he's earned the right for us to suspend disbelief, we are still talking about a man who pulverized his right leg in a car crash less than 10 months ago.

The 15-time major winner revealed that leg amputation was a real possibility, but one swing was all it took for Woods to be featured again on odds boards to win the 2022 Masters.

Just a week after posting the video, Woods sat down with Golf Digest's Henni Koyack to provide more insight into his recovery. The 82-time PGA TOUR winner appeared at peace with his career. While he hoped to return to competition, selectively choosing a few events a year seemed to be a logical reality.

No one expected his debut to be less than a month later at the PNC Championship, where he could ride in a cart and play alongside his son, Charlie.

A family scramble, with no real money or official world golf ranking points at stake, suddenly became one of the most captivating events of the year.

Tiger and Charlie tugged at our heartstrings one club twirl at a time, birdieing holes 7 through 17 on Sunday to ultimately finish in solo second behind Team Daly. Irons were flushed, putters were raised, and a familiar Sunday charge was made. For one afternoon in December, everything felt normal again.

While it's important to temper our expectations, Woods' performance at the PNC Championship can only be seen as encouraging. He struck the ball with TOUR-level speed and his competitive juices seemed replenished, to say the least.

While it's unclear when we'll next see him, one thing in golf remains abundantly clear - Tiger still comes first.