It’s Spring and the Major Golf Championship season is on the horizon. With The Masters Tournament beginning Thursday, many have their sights set on Jordan Spieth ’11 as the possible winner.
Odds on favorites:
Rory McIlroy: 11-2
Jordan Spieth: 8-1
Bubba Watson: 10-1
Other notables’ odds:
Jason Day: 14-1
Dustin Johnson: 16-1
Henrik Stenson: 18-1
Phil Mickelson: 18-1
Adam Scott: 20-1
Jimmy Walker: 22-1
Rickie Fowler: 33-1
Tiger Woods: 33-1[1]
World number one Rory McIlroy dominated the links last year, winning four times worldwide, consisting of the BMW PGA Championship, the flagship event on the European Tour, two majors, and a World Golf Championship (WGC). Recently, he has hit a bit of a slump, by his standards. With only three starts in the US this year, McIlroy missed the cut at the Honda Classic, where he won in 2012, as well as T9 and T11 finishes in the Cadillac Championship and the Arnold Palmer Invitational, respectively. His game certainly favors playing well at Augusta National, a course requiring length with the driver and accuracy with irons. With all of the added pressure to complete the Career Grand Slam (winning all four major golf championships) this week, McIlroy is not my choice to win, at least not this year.
Defending champion Bubba Watson looks to add a third Masters title to his record. After winning the final WGC of 2014, Watson moved to number three in the Official World Golf Rankings. He bumped up to number two in the world after finishing T14 in The Cadillac Championship, the first WGC of 2015, but then dropped back to number three after Henrik Stenson retook the number two spot with a runner-up finish in the Arnold Palmer Invitational. Watson’s game fits the course better than any other player in the game currently. Being a left-handed golfer, Bubba can hit the ball high with a right-to-left shape much easier than a right handed player can. Watson has more than enough length to dominate the course, leading the PGA Tour in driving distance two of the past three seasons. While Watson will be in green jacket ceremony this week, it will not be because he has won.
The most entertaining and certainly intriguing golfer of all time, Tiger Woods is still one of the favorites to win. While he might not be as popular of a choice as McIlroy or Spieth, Tiger sits at 33-1 odds. Woods is the only player who could play as poorly as he has in the past year and still be one of the more popular choices to win. One thing is for sure, if there is one mistake people have made about the four-time Masters champion, it is doubting him. I don’t think he’ll win, but I wouldn’t count him out because, well, he’s Tiger Woods.
Of course, there’s Jesuit’s own Jordan Spieth. NBC’s lead golf analyst Johnny Miller said, during Sunday’s final round coverage of the Shell Houston Open, “He’s the best player in the game right now. Hands down.” This comment comes from probably the most harsh commentator in the sport, which says something about just how good Spieth is playing. He is the most polarizing player in the game right now, and he definitely has the most momentum. In late November, Spieth shot a final round 63 in extremely tough conditions to win the Australian Open. Spieth went on to win by 6 strokes. After the round, defending champ McIlroy (@McIlroyRory) said (via Twitter):  “You could give me another 100 rounds today at The Australian and I wouldn’t sniff 63…. Well done @JordanSpieth very impressive!” 1:47 AM – 30 Nov 2014 (https://twitter.com/mcilroyrory/status/538962492605857792) The next week, in Tiger Woods’ own tournament, the 2011 grad won by 10 strokes. Earlier this year, Spieth won again, this time the Valspar Championship. He has continued his hot play the past two weeks in San Antonio and Houston, finishing second and tied for second respectively. The one aspect about his game that many question is his length off the tee. On tour, he is only slightly longer than average length, which is not in the current “formula” for dominating in major golf championships. However, what he lacks in distance, he makes up for in putting, chipping, and, most importantly, mental toughness. Heading into this year’s Masters Tournament, Spieth is a popular pick for analysts this week. While he is not my pick to win, I do not count him out. I think he will be near the lead late Sunday, with a chance to win.
The current leader of the FedEx Cup race (the PGA Tour’s playoff system), Jimmy Walker is poised to win. One of the best putters on tour, Walker ranks 3rd in Strokes gained putting per round[2], which will be important on Augusta National’s tricky greens. Averaging over 300 yards off the tee[3], Jimmy Walker has the distance to give himself a clear advantage over the majority of the field. Augusta National favors a right-to-left ball flight, with a high trajectory. For a right handed player, a high draw(right-to-left) is a difficult shot to hit, one very few can execute consistently. His natural, high draw gives him the advantage to land the ball softly and close to the hole on the rock hard greens.
Walker has won five times on tour in the past 18 months, the most of anyone in that time. His first career victory came in his 188th tournament, eight tournaments after that, he was a three time winner on tour. He defended his Sony Open title this January in Hawaii, as well as winning the Valero Texas Open in his home city of San Antonio two weeks ago over Jordan Spieth. Jimmy Walker was my pick to win last year, and he is my pick again this year.
The Masters is a course that favors experience, which is why so many who have done well in the past continue to finish well. After a good last couple of weeks, Phil Mickelson has now crept onto my radar. Although he didn’t play well on the weekend last week, the three time Masters winner has found good form leading into this prestigious tournament. Good friend to Phil, Rickie Fowler played well at all four majors last year. Look for him to finish well this week and possibly make a run late. Adam Scott has finished in the top-20 each of the past five years, including becoming the first Australian winner in 2013. His length off the tee and iron play give him a good chance to do well again this year. Scott’s kryptonite is the putter. Nearing the anchored putter ban at the beginning of 2016, Scott abandoned his 49″ putter a few weeks ago. He will return to the long putter for this year’s Masters. Another Australian, Jason Day has 14-1 odds to win. His length and touch around the greens make him another good pick to finish well.
Many players have a great chance to win this week. Elite touring professionals aim to peak their game around Masters time. This is why the better players always seem to be around the lead in majors.
Also, the benefits of winning at Augusta far exceed those at any other tournament, adding to the incentive to win. Winners get an invitation to play in every Masters tournament after they win. They become honorary members, which allows them to play the greatest course on Earth whenever it is open. Winners get a spot in the Champions’ locker room, one full of historic names such as Arnold Palmer, Sam Snead, and Jack Nicklaus. This locker room also contains famous masters artifacts such as clubs used to hit famous shots. The Tuesday before the tournament, the reigning champion hosts a Champions’ dinner where he picks the meal. All previous winners are invited, and many attend if physically able. Crystal dining ware is another prize many players will receive. A hole-in-one gets the player a crystal bowl, while the low round of each day gets the golfer a crystal vase. An eagle will get them two crystal goblets to take home at the end of the week [4].
Caddies wear white jumpsuits with a number which signifies order of registration. Another tradition is that the defending champion’s caddy wears number one on his suit, so be sure to notice Bubba Watson’s caddy wearing the number one. Finally, the green jacket is given to each winner to wear for a year until the next Masters Tournament, where they return it to be stored in the champions locker room. Champions have access to it any time they return to Augusta. A repeat winner wears the same jacket he received upon his first victory. In golf, nothing means more than a green jacket.
[1] Porter, Kyle. “2015 Masters: Rory McIlroy and Jordan Spieth are the betting favorites.” CBS Sports. April 6, 2015. http://www.cbssports.com/golf/eye-on-golf/25137376/masters-rory-mcilroy-and-jordan-spieth-are-the-betting-favorites. Accessed April 7, 2015.
[2] http://www.pgatour.com/stats/stat.02564.html. Accessed April 7, 2015.
[3] http://www.pgatour.com/stats/stat.101.html Accessed April 7, 2015.
[4] Floyd, Brian. “The Masters Traditions: From Green Jackets To Champions’ Perks.” SB Nation. April 3, 2012. http://www.sbnation.com/golf/2012/4/3/2919242/the-masters-traditions-green-jacket-champions-dinner-crystal. Accessed April 7, 2015.
