I have to believe that Messrs. Byrd, Fisher and O’Hair have finished the first hole, although the official Masters.Com leader board tells me otherwise. The clock chimes 8 as I type, indicating that 15 minutes should have transpired since this inaugural threesome planted tees in the soil. I have some thoughts about who might win but, thanks to Yahoo Fantasy Golf, I was only able to select 8 fellows to make a run for the wardrobe. Here I’ll reveal some other secret notions on the 2011 Masters tournament.I like Luke Donald, and not solely for his choice to play Mizuno clubs. I’ve a set of Mizuno blades and I’ll move to Mizuno cavities for my next set of clubs. He might be the guy to win both the par three and the tournament proper in the same week.
I like Tiger Woods at Augusta. The guy currently inhabiting his body may not be Tiger Woods, so I don’t know how he’ll fare this week.
I like Lee Westwood…the lad understands the course like Langer, Olazabal, Ballesteros and Faldo did during the 80s and 90s. If he gets one, just one at Augusta, he might win three of the next five.
My scoreboard tells me that Ross Fisher just made the first bogey of the event. The could spur him on to victory, serving as a wake-up call.
I also like a bunch of guys to have one or two good rounds, like Casey, Rose, Goosen, Immelman, Singh and The Mechanic from the non-USA side, paired with Mahan, Barnes, Stricker, Furyk and Kim from the USA side.
My old guy of the week is Craig Stadler, buoyed by his par-three-contest hole in one.
I like to think that Martin Kaymer will unravel a bit of the mystery of Bobby Jones’ trace. He is such a good player that a straightforward course like the ANGC should appeal to him.
As a winner, I just don’t know. I think that it might be any of the 99 competitors, save for the amateurs and the older, former champions. One more thing that makes the Masters unique…fellows who wouldn’t be qualified in any other way to compete in a major championship, compete in this one.
Augusta in April…
