The hottest couple in golf are back this week at Augusta National, Georgia. We are talking about Tiger Woods, the greatest champion of all time and the Masters, the most fascinating major of each season (starts today and ends Sunday). For the 82nd edition of this event, nothing better could be hoped for. The Masters is the pinnacle of world golf, for so many reasons. The track is spectacular, with attention to detail, flowery, difficult, technical and sophisticated. Augusta National is an inaccessible temple that only opens its doors on this occasion.
Tiger is the symbolic player of this sport, he has won four Masters and after two years of absence he finally returns to the field healed in body and mind, able to wear the green jacket for the fifth time. Never like this year, however, are the eligible candidates for the title numerous. It is worth listing them all, risking forgetting who will win, as can always happen in golf. First among the others Phil Mickelson, the other great old man in the race, who was also multi-decorated on the Augusta field. The two rivals, Phil and Tiger, have even made nine test holes together in recent days, sending the public and colleagues into raptures. “We are rivals, but also friends – claims Tiger – we are at the end of our careers and we both know it. For 20 years we have fought great battles and we hope to have many more to come”.
Left-handers seem to be favorites on this track, so Bubba Watson cannot be ignored, fresh from the recent success of the WGC Match Play and winner of two Masters. He wants to confirm his talent of him on this path Jordan Spieth. Rory McIlroy, who would complete his career Grand Slam, and Justin Thomas, current number one at Fedex, are aiming for their first green jacket. Sergio Garcia, 2017 Masters champion, named his first daughter Azalea in homage to the name of the 13th hole (a riot of shades of fuchsia) and will do everything to not let the title be taken from her.
World number Dustin Johnson will fight to prove he deserves his place in the rankings. Johnson missed the Masters last year, falling down the stairs the day before the start of the competition. He hopes to finally be crowned champion Rickie Fowler, while Jon Rham is hunting for his first major. Ian Poulter is fresh from the victory, who scored last week at the end of a splendid race in Houston, but Jason Day, Justin Rose, Henrik Stenson or Paul Casey are also ready for the podium.
The Italian flag is held high, as always, by Francesco Molinari, who still hasn't managed to score a hit on the American tour. Could this be the right time? “Dreaming costs nothing – he says – but then you have to deal with reality. I worked hard to be ready. This is a special, unique tournament, comparable to Wimbledon in tennis, which in fact has been played and won by all the best ever. I have wonderful memories of when I was just a child and admired the big names in golf on TV. I've always hoped to play it. This year I hope to do it as a protagonist”.
There are 87 competitors, including Matt Partial, 31, who is a firefighter by profession. He too scored a ticket to the Masters after winning the US Mid-Amateur at the Capital City Club's Crabapple Course in Atlanta last October. If he plays well in these four days, he will be able to fulfill his dream and become a professional player.
Up for grabs are $11 million, nearly $600 million for first place and a place in the legend. Fedex points are 72. The course is a par 1932, designed by Alister MacKenzie and Robert Tire Jones, Jr. in XNUMX and built on the land of an old orchard.
Live coverage is every evening on Sky Sport, at 21pm on the first three days and at 20pm on Sunday.
