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What is the measure of a true champion? Good question and it's being asked in different ways this week.

Zach Johnson, Masters Champion. It does have an odd ring to it and this is what has tongues wagging in the golf world.

Is Zach worthy of the Green Jacket? What's he won lately? In fact, what's he won in the last three years? And, finally, the biggest question of all: ZACH JOHSON???

So what is the measure of a true champion? I guess it varies from sport to sport. Wayne Gretzky, Steve Nash, Michael Jordan, brett favre are all examples of true champions.

But they had team mates playing the role of strong supporting casts. Doesn't take away from their championship pedigree one bit, does it? I mean, who would argue that Jordan was nothing without the Bulls by his side?

Alberto Tomba, Jimmy Connor, Roger Federer, Michael Schumacher. All champions, all with the backing and support of teams, coaches and trainers who are a bit more hidden from view.

But no one calls them "champion pretenders" because they had support in the wings.

Now we come to the professional golfer. Does he or she have a "team"? Well, if you count a swing coach, caddy, equipment rep and business manager as a team, I guess the answer is yes.

But that so-called support squad doesn't really offer much to get the professional ready for a major championship - or a regular, run-of-the-mill PGA stop for that matter.

I remember reading a guest column years ago in Golf Digest written by David Graham.

He said that at the start of every golf season, the professional begins the year about $100 thousand in the hole (1980 dollars). That's what it's going to cost in expenses for a season on tour.

In other words, the pro is on his own. He's a self-employed contractor, working as much or as little as necessary to pay the bills and squirrel some money away for retirement.

So it comes down to hard work, guts and glory, sweat and tears. All alone. The caddy offers advice but the golfer makes the final club selection and hits the ball.

That's all Zach Johnson did for four straight days in what is being called the toughest Masters in years, maybe ever.

This year, Augusta was a course you played in par and if you were very lucky, you picked up some birdies along the way.

What I've been reading since late Sunday afternoon deals largely with how poorly Augusta was prepared, how ridiculous the greens were, how the new trees offered no recovery shots, etc, etc.

And how the tournament lacked excitement.

I didn't read a lot of comment that heaped due praise on Zach Johnson's shoulders. There was some but there was not a lot.

After all, Zach Johnson didn't really deserve to win, did he? He's just one of those one-hit wonders, for heaven's sake. Makes a mockery of the tournament.

He's not really a true champion to start with, is he?

Or is he? After four brutal days of grinding, he was one over par, the best of the field.

That's 72 holes in which his heart was likely in his mouth at least once per hole.

He's proved that he's worthy to wear the Jacket which the golf world regards as the symbol of a true champion.

What is the measure of a true champion, indeed, if it's not Zach Johnson?