2021 Masters Preview WHAT ALL THE FUSS IS ABOUT FOR POSSIBLY THE MOST ICONIC MAJOR OF THEM ALL AND WHO HAS A CHANCE TO WIN THIS YEAR? A comprehensive look at the first major of the year by Martin Colwell. March 2021 Introduction It's only ve months since the 2020 Masters took place without spectators, 2021 is set to see the event return to its original date of the 8th to the 11th of April after last year's event was delayed because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Unlike last year, the 2021 Masters hopes to have a limited attendance of spectators at the Augusta National Golf Course as the best players in the world compete for one of golf's most notorious majors. Last year's Masters saw world number one Dustin Johnson put on an incredible performance as he nished on 20 under par and ve shots clear of second placed Cameron Smith and Sung-Jae Im. Johnson will be looking to win back-to-back Masters, but the wealth of talent he will be competing against means this task is not straight forward. Plus, it is exceedingly rare to see a player win consecutive green jackets. Only 3 players have ever won back-to-back Masters, the last player to do so was of course Tiger Woods in 2001 and 2002. Tiger will not be present this year. Apart from his recent serious car accident that may end his playing career, he has recently had back surgery which made him very doubtful for The Masters anyway. However, all the other big names in the game should be present. The Augusta course will be in full bloom in April and the course should play as it normally does, as opposed to in November 2020 when the colder autumn weather played a signicant part in how it played and how the greens changed. The course has been one for 'horses for courses' in the past and certain golfers tend to do well here most years. Such as Bubba Watson and Phil Mickelsen, who have won here before and will be teeing up again. The tournament can be won by outsiders… but that is a fairly rare occurrence. We look forward to play getting underway on the Thursday morning on the 8th April. Read on to get a feel for the history of the competition and see which of the eld we feel are seriously in the running to put on the famous green jacket… 2021 Masters Preview Page 1 The history of The Masters The Masters Tournament is a golf competition that was established in 1934, with Horton Smith winning the inaugural tournament. The Masters is the rst of four major championships to be played each year, with the nal round of the Masters always being scheduled for the second Sunday in April. The Masters is the only one of the four majors to use the same course every year; the Augusta National Golf Club. Masters champions are automatically invited to play in the other three majors (the U.S. Open, the Open Championship and the PGA Championship) for the next ve years, and earn a lifetime invitation to the Masters. They also receive membership on the PGA Tour for the following ve seasons and invitations to the Players Championship for the ve years following their victory. The champion also receives the "Green Jacket", the rst one being won by Sam Snead in 1949. The champion takes the jacket home for a year and returns it thereafter. A multiple champion will only have the one jacket unless his size changes dramatically! Jack Nicklaus holds the record for the most Masters victories, winning the tournament six times during his career. Nicklaus is also the oldest winner of the Masters: he was 46 years 82 days old when he won in 1986. Nicklaus, Nick Faldo, and Tiger Woods co-hold the record for most consecutive victories with two. Woods was the youngest winner of the Masters, 21 years 104 days old when he won in 1997. Woods also set the record for the widest winning margin (12 strokes). The lowest winning score, with 268 (-20) was Dustin Johnson in 2020. The highest winning score of 289 (+1) was originally set by Sam Snead in 1954, it was equalled by Jack Burke Jr. in 1956, and Zach Johnson in 2007. Five golfers have won the Masters wire-to-wire; Craig Wood in 1941, Arnold Palmer in 1960, Nicklaus in 1972, Raymond Floyd in 1976, and Jordan Spieth in 2015. Other players have led wire-to-wire if ties after a round are included, most recently Trevor Immelman in the 2008 Masters. A Masters winner both etches his name in the history of golf and gets to host the past champions dinner which takes place the following year on the eve of the tournament, including choosing the menu to be served that evening. Some recent choices of main course lack a bit of elegance, such as the cottage pie served by Danny Willett and the hamburgers served by Tiger Woods… to name but two! 2021 Masters Preview Page 2 Recent past champions Ÿ 2011 Charl Schwartzel in 274 strokes. Ÿ 2012 Bubba Watson in 278 strokes. Ÿ 2013 Adam Scott in 279 strokes. Ÿ 2014 Bubba Watson in 280 strokes. Ÿ 2015 Jordan Speith in 270 strokes. Ÿ 2016 Danny Willett in 283 strokes. Ÿ 2017 Sergio Garcia in 279 strokes. Ÿ 2018 Patrick Reed in 273 strokes. Ÿ 2019 Tiger Woods in 275 strokes. Ÿ 2020 Dustin Johnson in 268 strokes. Multiple champions Ÿ Jack Nicklaus on six occasions. Ÿ Tiger Woods on ve occasions. Ÿ Arnold Palmer on four occasions. Ÿ Gary Player on three occasions. Ÿ Jimmy Demaret on three occasions. Ÿ Sam Snead of three occasions. Ÿ Sir Nick Faldo on three occasions. Ÿ Phil Mickelsen on three occasions. 2021 Masters Preview Page 3 The Course https://www.pgatour.com/tournaments/masters-tournament/course.html The above link takes you through the Augusta National course hole by hole. Course Information Ÿ Augusta National, Augusta, Georgia: Designer: Dr Alister Mackenzie & Bobby Jones 1933 (re-designs 2008). Ÿ Course Type: Mid-Score, Classical Ÿ Holes with Water Hazards In-Play: 5 Ÿ Fairways: Ryegrass; First Cut: Ryegrass 1.38″ Ÿ Greens: Bentgrass Ÿ Difculty Rank 13 of 42 courses. Augusta's iconic 12th hole So, what do you need to know about Augusta National? The Augusta National course (you can visit the ofcial Masters website here) has detailed nuances which certain types of player thrive upon, whereas others struggle with factors such as uneven fairway lies, swirling winds and crazily fast and undulating Bentgrass greens. Naturally water comes into play much more on the back nine, with 3 key holes around Amen Corner, plus the critical par- 5 15th and the par-3 16th both offering scoring opportunities. 2021 Masters Preview Page 4 Since Augusta was re-modelled for the 2008 renewal, the course is always quoted as a 7,475 yard, Par 72 – but don't believe that as all fairways are traditionally mown against the hole direction to minimise driving distance, effectively meaning it plays closer to 7,800 yards. So pure yardage is way more important than creating the right angle into the ag. Other challenges include huge and contoured Bentgrass putting surfaces which can bamboozle the inexperienced and poor putters alike. Rating at anything up to 14+ on the Stimpmeter, these sub-air fuelled beauties are like little else the world's best golfers face across the rest of the season. Birdie chances are restricted to the smallest of target areas, many of which are only accessible by using the natural contours of the green. Difculty is also ratcheted up by Augusta's infamous run-off areas which surround all green complexes. The lack of rough creates indecision when missing greens with scrambling percentages suffering as a result. Too many options can confuse players, so course experience and a patient outlook pays. Augusta is a game of two halves. Attack all the 4 par-5s and several shorter par-4s such as the 3rd, 9th, and the 14th. The rest of the course needs to be played with maturity and patience. Chasing scores tends to yield bogeys rather than birdies on these holes, so par golf across most holes is more than acceptable. To win a Green Jacket a player must be aggressive on the 4 par-5s and minimise bogeys across the rest of the property via a mix of metronomic greens in regulation, top-level scrambling and rock-solid short to medium distance putting. 2021 Masters Preview Page 5 Players to Watch The Masters always has a few unexpected front runners amongst the most recognisable faces of the game and given the difference in conditions to last year's event, the course will have a totally different feel to it. Previous winner Patrick Reed had a top ten placing last November and if it was not for a few key missed putts he may well have put a little more pressure on the runaway leader. Four-time major winner Rory McIlroy is still in search for his rst green jacket and knows more than anyone that this is the missing major that has haunted him for so long, with a player of McIlroy's ability you must say that it is surely a matter of time before he can add a win at The Masters to his wonderful career. You can expect many of the top ten players to be in with a shout and the usual big names to be in contention on Sunday afternoon such as Jon Rahm, Justin Thomas, Xander Schauffele and Webb Simpson.