This article is part of our Weekly PGA Preview series.
Every golf fan has their favorite major. For some, it's the U.S. Open because of the unique challenge it presents. It's billed at the "toughest" major and for sadists, it's quite a riot to watch the best golfers in the world struggle to make pars. Some prefer the uniqueness of the Open Championship, if for no other reason than it's unlike anything we see on the PGA Tour on an annual basis. It certainly doesn't hurt that the morning people get to watch golf from the moment they wake up, often setting their clocks for a time normally reserved for "making the donuts." There's even a small segment that prefers the PGA Championship above them all. I call those people contrarians. I've still yet to hear a believable reason why the PGA Championship is the best major, but who am I to tell somebody which is their favorite?
My favorite and judging by every metric I can think of, the people's favorite, is the Masters. To be fair, the Masters has a ton of built-in advantages. For starters, it's the first major of the season. More important, it breaks the longest stretch between majors each season. The anticipation begins to build in January and by the time March rolls around, all anyone can think about is Augusta. Who's the favorite, who is in good shape leading into the Masters, etc. … Perhaps the biggest advantage it has is the course. Not just the course itself, but the familiarity everyone has
Every golf fan has their favorite major. For some, it's the U.S. Open because of the unique challenge it presents. It's billed at the "toughest" major and for sadists, it's quite a riot to watch the best golfers in the world struggle to make pars. Some prefer the uniqueness of the Open Championship, if for no other reason than it's unlike anything we see on the PGA Tour on an annual basis. It certainly doesn't hurt that the morning people get to watch golf from the moment they wake up, often setting their clocks for a time normally reserved for "making the donuts." There's even a small segment that prefers the PGA Championship above them all. I call those people contrarians. I've still yet to hear a believable reason why the PGA Championship is the best major, but who am I to tell somebody which is their favorite?
My favorite and judging by every metric I can think of, the people's favorite, is the Masters. To be fair, the Masters has a ton of built-in advantages. For starters, it's the first major of the season. More important, it breaks the longest stretch between majors each season. The anticipation begins to build in January and by the time March rolls around, all anyone can think about is Augusta. Who's the favorite, who is in good shape leading into the Masters, etc. … Perhaps the biggest advantage it has is the course. Not just the course itself, but the familiarity everyone has with this course.
Golf fans can generally picture a hole or two from a number of courses in the major rotation, but with Augusta, these holes are burnt into our minds. It's not just "Amen Corner" either. It's the par 5s on the back nine, the 18th hole, the 16th hole, heck nearly every golf fan can attach a certain memory to every single hole on that course.
Familiarity is said to breed content, but that's certainly not true in this case. Your favorite major might take place in June, July or August, but for many, including myself, this is the best week of the golf season. It's Masters Week!
This week: The Masters - Augusta National, Augusta, Ga.
Last Year: Sergio Garcia shot a final-round 69 on his way to a playoff victory over Justin Rose.
PLAYERS TO CONSIDER
Jordan Spieth
It's been a wild season for Spieth as he's struggled at times to get around the most pedestrian courses, but his game is finally where it needs to be to contend this week and few players in the field have a better track record at this event. Yes, plenty of golfers have had more success, but none has been as consistent as Spieth. He's played this event four times and his worst finish was a T11 last year. In his first three starts, he finished T2, first and T2.
Justin Rose
Rose is the guy no one likes to talk about, yet he's usually in the mix here. Golfers like McIlroy, Spieth, DJ and Tiger gobble up the headlines, but it's Rose who just plugs along and sneaks into contention year after year. Rose has finished runner-up in two of his last three starts here. He's finished in the top 25 in eight consecutive starts at Augusta. In 12 starts, he's never missed a cut.
Tiger Woods
When Woods took the lead at Bay Hill a few weeks ago, he rocketed up the odds chart, all the way to the top. Most of that has to do with the way the public wants to bet, but part of it is that he actually has a chance to win this week. Woods has looked the part in his last two starts and his advantage over the field at Augusta is about as large as you'll find on the PGA Tour. He's not the best pick this week, but he's certainly in the mix.
Bubba Watson
Watson was at a crossroads heading into this season. After a couple down seasons, he could have easily packed it in and coasted the rest of his time on the PGA Tour, but he's done the exact opposite this season, showing a form that we haven't seen in quite a while. Watson is a two-time winner here and his form is as good as anyone. There's really nothing to dislike about Watson this week.
Fred Couples
Couples is not going to win this week, that's a given. But if you are looking for a sleeper or perhaps a cheap DFS option, there's a good chance that Couples will play well this week. Couples doesn't have the firepower to keep up with the big guns, but wrap your mind around this: he's finished in the top 20 in six of his last seven starts here. Do you know how many people in the field can say that? You don't need a pen and paper – only Rose and Woods.
PLAYERS TO AVOID
Webb Simpson
This is generally the easiest "Avoid List" to put together all season as golfers either can get around Augusta or they can't. Simpson has a couple top-30s on his resume, but he's never cracked the top 25 and has missed the cut in half of his six starts at Augusta. In other words, he can't get around this course.
Patrick Reed
Reed has played well in several spots this season, but this isn't a place where he's had much success. Reed has teed it up here four times, missed the cut twice and never cracked the top 20. If his game is on this week, he might crack the top 20, but he's not going to contend.
Zach Johnson
Johnson is truly the exception to what is a very strong Masters rule in that he's the only former Masters champion, still near his prime, who's missed almost as many cuts as he's made here. Johnson has missed the cut in six of his 13 starts and has just one top-25 in his last nine starts at the Masters.
Marc Leishman
Leishman might be a better golfer now than at any point in his career, but he has a lot of bad history to overcome this week. Leishman has a top-5 at this event, but it appears to be a one-off as his other four starts were less than stellar. Leishman missed the cut here in three of five starts.
Tony Finau
It's not unprecedented for first-timers to get off to a good start at Augusta, but sooner or later, this course catches up with a golfer if he doesn't have any course knowledge. It's why golfers who play well here, always play well here – they know when to take chances and when not to. Finau will learn a lot this week and with any luck he'll be back with a chance to contend next year.
ONE AND DONE GOLFER
Last week: Henrik Stenson (T6) - $243,250; Season - $4,146,282
This week: Jordan Spieth - This pick came down to Spieth and Watson. Prior to the Houston Open, I was on Watson, but Spieth's performance, coupled with his track record here, pushed him ahead slightly. Spieth also has a higher floor in that he won't ever spot grinding, even if things aren't going well. The same can't be said for Watson.
PGATOUR.COM PICKS
This Week:
Starters: Justin Rose, Tiger Woods, Jordan Spieth, Bubba Watson
Bench: Rory McIlroy, Jason Day
SURVIVOR PICK
Last week: Scott Piercy - (T24); Streak - 2
This week: Justin Rose - This is by far the easiest major to find a survivor pick. There are at least 10 golfers I would be comfortable picking in this spot, but it's tough to pass up on Rose, who is 12-for-12 at Augusta.
