Tuesday 5 April 2016 13:19, UK
The 80th renewal of the Masters gets under way on Thursday. We flag up five things to look out for at Augusta National.
The battle for World No 1
Coming into the first major of the year, the new 'Big Three' of golf - Jason Day, Jordan Spieth and Rory McIlroy - have taken the honours in five of the last six. Spieth recently saw Day relieve him of his No 1 ranking, but he will hope to recapture that with a successful defence of the title he strolled to last spring.
Of the trio, Day is arguably in the best form having won each of his last two starts, however, history is not on his side with only two men having tasted Masters glory on the back of two victories - Tiger Woods and Jack Nicklaus.
Hoping to complete a grand slam of majors, McIlroy is the only player in the world's top seven other than Henrik Stenson not to have won a tournament this year. However, top-four finishes in his last two starts have him in good shape heading to Augusta where he has decided to sit out the Par Three on Wednesday to concentrate on the serious business starting 24 hours later.
Should the Northern Irishman prevail come Sunday evening, he will become the first European since Jose Maria Olazabal in 1999 to be fitted with a green jacket.
No Tiger
For the second time since his debut in 1995, four-time Masters champion Tiger Woods will be absent come Thursday morning. The former world No 1 underwent back surgery towards the end of last year and and said at the time he did not feel 'physically ready' to be able to compete.
Former PGA Tour pro Frank Nobilo said: "It will be radically different than 2014 when he was fresh off regaining his No 1 ranking. He had been a feature in seven of his previous eight starts at Augusta and his physical issues weren't truly known. At 38, he was still the game.
"But over the last two seasons the void created by his sporadic play has been filled by golf's multi-pronged attack and this has changed the focal point of today's game."
Debutants to impress
European Tour pros Andy Sullivan and Rafa Cabrera-Bello are just two of the first-time players this week who will be looking to take their impressive domestic form into the Masters.
Sullivan, who won three European Tour events in 2015, will be hoping to impress on the big stage after coming second in the Omega Dubai Desert Classic, while Cabrero-Bello, who lies second in the Race to Dubai rankings, has clocked up three top fives in his last five starts prior to heading to Augusta, including a 3&2 victory over McIlroy in the WGC Dell Match Play.
Closest Masters yet?
It seems almost impossible to call who will win this week with so many players finding excellent form in the first quarter of the year. Former champion Phil Mickelson cannot be discounted. He has been in contention several times this season, missing the cut just once this year, and must be considered a live prospect for a fourth Green Jacket.
Two-time champion Bubba Watson (2012 and 2014) has been enjoying a fine season, capped off by his victory in the Northern Trust Open in February, while 2013 winner Adam Scott followed his runners-up spot to Bubba at the same tournament with back-to-back victories in his next two events.
English duo Justin Rose and Danny Willett merit a mention when looking for a potential winner come Sunday evening. Former US Open champion Rose finished second last year, while Willett has moved up to 12th in the World Rankings following a win at the Omega Dubai Desert Classic in February.
Asked to pick a winner ahead of the first major of the year, defending champion Spieth said: "I think this year's Masters might be the hardest one to win in quite a while as far as the depth of the field and the quality of golf being played by people who play Augusta National very well."
The Curse of the Par Three Contest
In the history of the Par Three contest, the winner of the traditional curtain-raiser has never gone on to prevail in the main event. Padraig Harrington came close in 2012, where he finished tied for eighth, but others such as 2013 winner Ted Potter Jr failed to make the cut.
That statistic is unlikely to trouble McIlroy who has given the 'knockabout' a wide berth this year with his main focus the only major he has yet to add to his CV.
"The year I had my best chance at Augusta, 2011," McIIroy said. "I didn't play the Par Three contest so maybe the decision not to play it this year can work in my favour."
