I love the Masters, though I’m not crazy about the way broadcasters fall all over themselves with romantic narratives about the course, the trees, the flowers, the Green Jacket, the ghosts of past champions no longer alive, the music, Amen Corner, the Hogan Bridge, Jim Nance, no commercials and just about everything else.
The reality is the Masters, in and of itself, is not necessarily the most difficult to win of the four majors. It just may be the one with the most history that never changes because it’s always played at August National. Because past champions are permitted to play, unless they choose not to, it is a diluted field. And when past champions such as Fred Couples (Bridgestone Tour B RX) return, there is much talk about his past successes and his ability to consistently make the cut, even into his 60s. But understanding and knowing the nuances of the course is a huge advantage, even for someone playing on the Champions Tour.
The other thing about the Masters is the course is manicured to perfection. The greens are in pristine condition, and there is no need to let the rough grow to increase the difficulty of play or ensure the greens are as sleek as a skating rink, which is the case at the U.S. Open. .
I think The Open is the most of the four majors because of the weather conditions, to say nothing of the crater-like bunkers. Links golf is always more intriguing.
The Masters has also become the event where the PGA Tour and LIV Golf players meet for the first time, since the divide four years ago. To a certain extent, the LIV Golf players present a challenge for people handicapping the tournament because they don’t play the same competitive type of tournaments as the PGA Tour players with only three rounds instead of four. So in that sense, there is intrigue, but it becomes less and less with every year.
Who knows if and when the two leagues come to a truce? If they do, we’ll see the best players coming into the Masters in peak form. It really is hard to gauge success or failure on the LIV Tour.
This year’s Masters is really all about two players – Scotty Scheffler (Titleist Pro V1), looking for his third victory in the last three years, and Rory McIlroy (TaylorMade TP5x), searching for his first win to complete his personal career Grand Slam. I think a lot of people are cheering for him, in particular because he has had a solid season so far.
In my golf pool, I chose McIlroy and Collin Morikawa (Taylor Made TP5). I had already used Scheffler the maximum two times, so he wasn’t an option. I was saving McIlroy. I keep looking for Morikawa to recover his winning ways of a few years ago.
McIlroy, as I have often noted, has taken the mantle as the most dynamic golf personality in the world, supplanting Tiger Woods (Bridgestone TOUR B X), who for all intents and purposes has simply suffered too many injuries to become a factor.
So enjoy the Masters but try not to get too emotional watching it and hearing the announcers trying to describe in Shakespearean terms. Then again, I love The Open because of the way the British announcers tend to make everything sound dramatic, especially with adjectives such as cracker and brilliant.
