OT: The Master's. Tiger's In. As of Now

[Chin Diesel]

Walking the course is what will do him in.

TV doesn't do the course justice as far as the elevation changes. Adrenaline may get him through Thursday or Friday and he makes the cut. By Saturday, if he has any fatigue or limits on his health, it will start to show.

 

[Chin Diesel]

Surprised there's only one mention (didn't miss any, did I) for Scheffler. He's playing better than anyone right now. Kinda reminds me of Koepka a few years ago when he won his first major. Not really going out on a limb with the world number 1, but I would definitely have some money on him if I did such things. I like Morikawa as well.

For the record, I do think Tiger will make the cut. His short game is said to be excellent right now and that's important at Augusta. Don't think he has the stamina to last through the weekend in contention however.

In my OP I said I'd stay away from the usual suspects and Scheffler is now firmly planted in the usual suspects category. At least he is to me.

 

[uconngb]

In my OP I said I'd stay away from the usual suspects and Scheffler is now firmly planted in the usual suspects category. At least he is to me.

Winner will come from the top 10-12 players in the world. Count on it.

 

[LIuconn]

That’s not a huge statement there

 

[uconngb]

That’s not a huge statement there

They are all usual suspects, in contradiction to the previous post

 

[Chin Diesel]

Winner will come from the top 10-12 players in the world. Count on it.

I'm way too lazy to look it up, but recently, say within past 3-5 years, the winner averaged being #12 in the OWGR, so you seem to be on to something.

I snipped this off the OWGR rankings for the current top-25.

 

[uconngb]

I'm way too lazy to look it up, but recently, say within past 3-5 years, the winner averaged being #12 in the OWGR, so you seem to be on to something.

I snipped this off the OWGR rankings for the current top-25.

View attachment 75332

I believe Koepka is the only one not in the top 12 with a good chance of winning and he has been moving back up the rankings recently (dropped after his knee surgery and a few bad outings afterwards last year)

 

[QDOG5]

Spieth's Masters resume is impressive. If he is even par after Thursday he will be in the hunt. Personally, I've never been to the Masters. I had a few chances to go watch some practice rounds but I had 4 young kids at the time so I took a pass. It is definitely on my to do list.

 

[Blakeon18]

Another Masters topic?

Under the radar somewhat: No Mickelson.

Just a guess: his current absence is not Phil wanting to take some time off.
It is because the PGA has suspended him for a period of time. They do not announce such suspensions and permit
the players to tell the public whatever they wish explaining their absence...a public relations nod.

Now... The Masters is not run by the PGA and Mickelson is hugely popular there. But I suspect The Masters
powers-that-be are only too glad to quietly go along with the absence and privately have told him to stay away and
stay silent on the matter. If he did play they would be concerned that constant Saudi Arabia tour questions would be aimed at him...and other players would be peppered with their take on things. Not what they want the focus to be.

Cool temperatures for the most part coming up...hope their drainage system keeps the greens fast.
Tiger makes the cut...imo.

BTW: Par 3 event today if the weather holds. Hit and giggle golf for sure....3:00 PM on espn.
If Tiger plays...make a bet that son Charlie...12 years old and good...tees it up on #9.
And if daughter Sam [Samantha?] wants to to, she tees it up on another hole. 16 years old and she made
a virtual ace in her speech a couple of weeks ago at the introduction of her Dad to the HOF. She was great.

 

[Chin Diesel]

Spieth's Masters resume is impressive. If he is even par after Thursday he will be in the hunt. Personally, I've never been to the Masters. I had a few chances to go watch some practice rounds but I had 4 young kids at the time so I took a pass. It is definitely on my to do list.

I've twice won the lottery for practice rounds and it is such a great value/experience. Tickets are dirt cheap.

I like the practice rounds because you can watch them prep on the range and putting green and watch them do cool stuff around the greens.
You'll see caddies putting tees in the ground on the greens for locations they know the pins will be for tournament days. You can listen yo the banter between the players as they practice. They try different wedges or irons for height and spin. You get a good feel of how they work their craft.
It's really neat when you see a player practice something Tues or Wed and then you see them face the situation on the weekend.
Come tournament time no matter what strategy you pick you will miss most of the golf. You can follow groups or watch a hole or two. Gimme TV for that.

And that's true for any golf tourney for me. Check out practice rounds in person watch for realz on the tube.

That being said, it would he awesome to be around 18 for any Tourney on a Sunday. Spieth's bunker hole out at Traveler's would have been great to see.

 

[Chin Diesel]

BTW, winds are supposed to hbe stiff Friday and Saturday. Going to see some real bad looking shots on 12 due to swirls in that corner of the course.

 

[gwhuskyfan]

I've twice won the lottery for practice rounds and it is such a great value/experience. Tickets are dirt cheap.

I like the practice rounds because you can watch them prep on the range and putting green and watch them do cool stuff around the greens.
You'll see caddies putting tees in the ground on the greens for locations they know the pins will be for tournament days. You can listen yo the banter between the players as they practice. They try different wedges or irons for height and spin. You get a good feel of how they work their craft.
It's really neat when you see a player practice something Tues or Wed and then you see them face the situation on the weekend.
Come tournament time no matter what strategy you pick you will miss most of the golf. You can follow groups or watch a hole or two. Gimme TV for that.

And that's true for any golf tourney for me. Check out practice rounds in person watch for realz on the tube.

That being said, it would he awesome to be around 18 for any Tourney on a Sunday. Spieth's bunker hole out at Traveler's would have been great to see.

Spot on. Won the lottery for the practice round and was there on Monday (have had these tickets for 2.5 years pre-COVID). Amazing experience. 79 and sunny. Got a few holes of Tiger in. Best part of the practice round is it's one of the only days you can take pictures on the course. And you get first crack at the merchandise shop.

 

[Jimdish255]

Tiger is no stranger to rehab so you have to trust he thinks he can perform at an above average level and make the cut. But I think we all know there's plenty that can impact his chances of going into the weekend. I haven't followed closely but a reasonable assumption is he's been practicing under fairly controlled conditions and not challenging bad lies and weather conditions. Either of those can throw any golfer for a loop but if you have physical limitations it becomes magnified on the course. In perfect conditions I'd give him a shot at top 30 but odds are he falls apart occasionally and drops shots. Still a player with tremendous talent and will just to get here and risk it. Fire for the game is in still in him but frustration may be high on the course. Hopefully he's ready for that mental aspect and we don't see clubs flying in the water. Or maybe you like that sort of thing. People will be tuned in to find out.
Tiger = Drama

 

[methodology]

If you look at the best putters (by strokes gained) from within 15 ft the list looks like this

 

[Blakeon18]

Augusta chairman: Phil Mickelson was invited to Masters but pulled out

Augusta National Golf Club chairman Fred Ridley denied taking away Phil Mickelson's invitation to the Masters, saying Mickelson pulled out.

www.espn.com

Well...so much for my theory about Augusta being grateful that Mickelson isn't there....according to the Masters
chairman. I still go with the theory behind his absence on the PGA tour events.

Just maybe the chairman might fudge things a bit about his conversation with Phil?

 

[Hurleyman216]

Personally, I wouldn’t bet against Tiger.
His power may never be what it was, but sounds like he’s been working on everything inside of 100 yards and that part of his game is apparently extremely tuned up right now. I wouldn’t be shocked to see him on the front page of the leaderboard come Saturday or Sunday. At Augusta it’s all about eliminating big mistakes.

 

[ClifSpliffy]

Tiger is no stranger to rehab so you have to trust he thinks he can perform at an above average level and make the cut. But I think we all know there's plenty that can impact his chances of going into the weekend. I haven't followed closely but a reasonable assumption is he's been practicing under fairly controlled conditions and not challenging bad lies and weather conditions. Either of those can throw any golfer for a loop but if you have physical limitations it becomes magnified on the course. In perfect conditions I'd give him a shot at top 30 but odds are he falls apart occasionally and drops shots. Still a player with tremendous talent and will just to get here and risk it. Fire for the game is in still in him but frustration may be high on the course. Hopefully he's ready for that mental aspect and we don't see clubs flying in the water. Or maybe you like that sort of thing. People will be tuned in to find out.
Tiger = Drama

'Hopefully he's ready for that mental aspect and we don't see clubs flying in the water.'
ur kidding, right? clubs in the water?
so one of the all time greats, who recently shattered his leg, yet picked himself up, and beat that setback handily, is now possibly going to toss his clubs becuz of a bad shot?
r u on drugs? pro tip: stay in school, don't do drugs.
el tigre is one of the greatest athletes and competitors, ever.
that's what his permanent record card sez. me too.

 

[methodology]

Data Golf

Statistics and data visualization, applied to golf.

datagolf.com

Here’s a great site/resource with a lot of data. A lot of predictions behind paywall but a lot of free resources also

 

[HuskyHawk]

Personally, I wouldn’t bet against Tiger.
His power may never be what it was, but sounds like he’s been working on everything inside of 100 yards and that part of his game is apparently extremely tuned up right now. I wouldn’t be shocked to see him on the front page of the leaderboard come Saturday or Sunday. At Augusta it’s all about eliminating big mistakes.

I'd be very surprised if he can make the cut. It's nice that he's giving it a go for the fans, but I view Tiger playing about like I'd view Nicklaus or Watson playing a few years back.

 

[Deepster]

I'd be very surprised if he can make the cut. It's nice that he's giving it a go for the fans, but I view Tiger playing about like I'd view Nicklaus or Watson playing a few years back.

I'll bet you he makes the cut. What do you want to put up for stakes?

 

[Verne]

I'd be very surprised if he can make the cut. It's nice that he's giving it a go for the fans, but I view Tiger playing about like I'd view Nicklaus or Watson playing a few years back.

This is up there with worst posts on the BY.

 

[mauconnfan]

Koepka and Horschel I like.

Would love to just have Tiger in the hunt place would be beyond electric!

 

[HuskyHawk]

I'll bet you he makes the cut. What do you want to put up for stakes?

I'd say an embarrassing avatar for a week, but you've still got yours. 91 golfers, 50 make the cut. So that's better than 50-50 odds he does, so maybe he will. I'm not rooting against Tiger, quite the opposite, but he hasn't done it post accident. This is what he said after the PNC: "I'm a long way away from playing tournament golf," Woods said. "This is hit, hop in a cart."

 

[QDOG5]

Might wanna switch Burns for Young too. Love the local kid from Westchester but Burns is a stud

I missed Burns being a first timer. I would have picked him. Really good putter and I like taking good putters at the Masters. Under the radar guy who I think will do well is Russell Henley.

 

[LIuconn]

It’s the easiest cut to make all year. Small field + amateurs and old past champions

The weather & temps is what would hold him back