85th Masters: Who Will Don The Green Jacket On Sunday?

The azaleas and dogwoods are in full bloom.  They are just a couple of the 350 varieties of flowers and trees that make the Augusta National Golf Club such a spectacular setting for the first major championship of the 2021 golf season.  There’s simply no color of green like Augusta National green and one of golf’s most iconic awards — The Green Jacket — will be slipped onto a new champion come Sunday.

So once again we return in our mind’s eye to the place we have visited seven times in April.  Once again we celebrate that incredible rite of spring as the world’s best gather for the 85th playing of The Masters.  Without further pomp and circumstance, we get right to the inexact science of pondering those who might contend for The Green Jacket come Sunday afternoon when the tournament really begins — on the back nine at Augusta National:

Top Tier Challengers:

Justin Thomas:  Winning The Players brought the real “J.T.” back to us.  He’s overcome a few life circumstances but now he’s one of the best.  Ranked second in the world, J.T.’s our pick to don The Green Jacket on Sunday.  Flying a bit under the radar thanks to D.J. and Bryson.

Dustin Johnson:  Only three players have won The Masters back-to-back.  We don’t believe D.J. will be the fourth.  The course played far different last November than it will this week.  Still, we expect him to be in the hunt on Sunday.  One thing we’re pretty sure of, D.J. won’t shoot 20-under this week.

Jordan Spieth:  Welcome back, Jordy!  He’s not all the way back but thought here is that he has enough experience with the intricacies of the Augusta National greens complexes.  His putting was spot-on last week and that along with his short-game skills could make him a contender.

Jon Rahm:  Has the complete game.  One area where he needs to click this week is putting and reading these tough-to-read greens complexes.  His mental state is sky-high after becoming a father for the first time last weekend.

Bryson DeChambeau:  Distance-obsessed, rules-arguing, protein shake-chugging, U.S. Open-winning, golf ball-crushing, Kyle Berkshire-admiring, driver-experimenting Bryson has become The Most Interesting Man In Golf.  Thought here is that he could really contend if he would adopt a more “strategic” game plan for this golf course.  But that’s not really in his DNA, is it?  Bryson is too tempted to “smash-the-heck-out-of-it” on this golf course.  Firm, fast conditions will hurt his or anyone’s stray drives this week.  Still, we expect him to do a lot better than a tie for 21st, his previous best here.

Second Tier Challengers:

Patrick Reed:  With an incredible short game and a pretty imaginative game, Reed’s a threat.  Not enough rough at Augusta National for Reed to do his old “tamp down the grass” shenanigans.  He’s re-tooled his swing with David Leadbetter.  Depends on how he drives the ball this week.

Brooks Koepka:  Here’s our surprise.  It was a shocker to see Brooks show up this past Sunday.  He looks fine but simply walking the course can be a challenge to someone recovering from knee surgery.  Brooks said he wouldn’t be here if he thought he was going to finish second.  We’ve learned that he performs best when people doubt him.  Could have won in 2019 when Tiger got his fifth jacket.  Twelfth hole was his downfall that year.

Tony Finau:  Has performed here before.  No truth to the rumor that Tony was checking on what fourth place pays.

Billy Horschel:  Here’s another surprise among our “contenders.”  Billy’s ball-striking is good enough for him to be a factor.  Like everyone else, just depends on his work on and around the greens.

Xander Schauffele:  Has the ability but does he have what it takes to thrive on the back nine on Sunday?

Third Tier Challengers:

Adam Scott: He’d be a top contender if he didn’t have to use that gosh-awful long putter.

Collin Morikawa:  Can strike his golf ball but not sure about that claw putting style.  When you have putting issues, this isn’t the place to thrive.

Rory McIlroy:  Gotta wonder where his confidence level stands?  Can he make putts on these greens?  That’s the big question surrounding on of the game’s great talents.  He should have won this by now and completed the career Grand Slam.

Scottie Scheffler:  Raw talent still in the “refining” stage.  Could make some noise here but not enough experience to win yet.

Lee Westwood:  He’s a re-born star.  Would be the story of the year if he won here.

Fourth Tier Challengers:

Matthew Fitzpatrick:

Tyrrell Hatton:  Has the game, does he have the temper-control and attitude to succeed here?

Abraham Ancer:  Abe tied for 13th in November.

Hideki Matsuyama:  Hideki-san is playing better.  Has a lot of experience here.

Webb Simpson:  Like Matty Fitz, firm and fast helps Webb.

The Pretenders:

It’s often been said The Masters is the easiest major for a top-caliber player to win.  Witness that Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods have 11 Green Jackets between them.  Basically, you have to beat about 25 guys to win this thing.

Guys who can’t win?  All the amateurs, all the former champions over 50 — guys like Sandy Lyle, Vijay Singh, Larry Mize, Mike Weir and Fred Couples.  There are more as well.

Big question?  Who will be the Sungjae Im and Cameron Smith of 2021.  Those guys tied for second last year and played well enough to win had D.J. not pounded Augusta National with his 20-under performance.

Once again, A Tradition Unlike Any Other returns.

It’s April, there will be patrons on site and at least the world of golf begins the return to “normal.”

First and Second Round Tee Times and Pairings:

How To Watch:  A number of friends have expressed dismay at ESPN not coming on the air until 3 p.m. on Thursday and Friday.  Best thing anyone can do is go to The Masters site, www.masters.com and watch “live” as they show featured groups in the mornings and typically they are high-profile groups.  They show different key holes on the course as well.  Coverage is awesome and you won’t be disappointed.