Masters Preview

Less than 12 hours away from the first strike of the 2012 Masters Tournament, the anticipation is as high as I can remember. Here's my preview:

--All of the world's best players have played well so far in 2012. Rory McIlroy won the Honda, Luke Donald won the Transitions, and even Hunter Mahan, now the highest ranked American in the world, has won two times including last week at the Shell Houston Open. Then of course, the big guys. Phil and Tiger. Both players have won already in 2012 and have a combined 7 green jackets. Tiger won two weeks ago at Bay Hill, and Phil earlier in the year at Pebble Beach. I certainly don't remember in past years this many good players winning this early in the PGA Tour schedule. That to me, is a great sign that we are about to witness Masters history on Sunday afternoon.

--Golf has been waiting for a new rivalry to emerge. Most of the old-timers got to experience the good ol days with Nicklaus, Player, Watson, Palmer and then into the 90's with the Norman-Faldo-Ballesteros rivalry that made every major more exciting. Although Tiger and Phil has been a "rivalry", Tiger has certainly won more majors and more tournaments. We have never really had the Tiger-Phil head to head duel in a major. There have been a few where they were in a separate groups, but never the final group on Sunday. But now, most believe that the next major rivalry is on the horizon: Tiger and Rory. McIlroy won the 2011 U.S. Open and certainly had the 2011 Masters in his grasp before a back nine meltdown that I don't think any of us will ever forget. Tiger and Rory are what golf needs. We need our own modern day version of the "duel in the sun" between Nicklaus and Watson. I think there is a very good chance that happens this weekend. Both Tiger and Rory are playing too well for them not to be in contention.

--There are a lot of top level guys who are certainly flying under the radar this week at Augusta. Most notably, no one seems to be talking about Luke Donald (currently #1 in the world) or Lee Westwood (currently #3 in the world). Donald finished 4th in the 2011 Masters and as I mentioned earlier, has already won on tour this year. Westwood has yet to win in 2012, but has played solidly. He finished 2nd in Dubai, 4th at the Honda Classic, and 21st last week in Houston. A player from Great Britain hasn't taken home the green jacket since 96' (Nick Faldo), but I have a feeling these two guys could be in the mix late Sunday evening.

Every golfer loves the Masters. Its like a religion. When Masters week arrives, there is just a different feeling in the air. I am expecting a great week and a leaderboard filled with big names from the beginning. There is nothing quite like Masters Sunday, and I believe this particular Sunday, will be one for the ages.


Picks:

Winner: Tiger Woods- He hasn't finished outside of the top 10 since I was in middle school. A bad finish for Tiger at Augusta these days is 4th. Tiger has shown that his game is sharp with the win two weeks ago, and seems very confident in his ability to win majors again. I think Tiger ends his nearly 4 year major drought and takes home the green jacket.

Dark Horse: Steve Stricker- He is traditionally one of the best putters in the game. He finished T-6th back in 2009, and plays a draw that fits the mold of a lot of holes at Augusta National. I could see Strick making some noise this weekend at Augusta.

--GM