Category: Golf

After what has to be the best US Masters for a number of years, watching Rory McIlroy complete the Grand Slam, I think nothing’s going to stop him now.

It’s like he’s overcome that mental barrier that has been stopping him all of these years and he’s in the form of his life. When he dropped shots towards the end to force a play-off with Justin Rose, he showed nerves of steel to come back – in previous years, he would have crumbled.

I was that convinced he’d win, I even had a little punt each way, which made it extra sweet, though based on his performance at Augusta, I’m very tempted to back him for The Open in July.

Obviously before this, there is the small matter of the PGA Championship and US Open and he could well do the clean sweep, which would be an extraordinary achievement and something that no professional golfer has ever achieved.

I really think he looks unstoppable and I’m sure that if he fails to win any of them, then it won’t be because he’s playing poorly – I’d be very surprised if he doesn’t finish inside the top five for each anyway.

What Has Changed For McIlroy?

I’ve never seen him more focused on a golf course and there were times when I was watching over the four days where I thought I was watching a robot. His putting game has come on leaps and bounds and he is playing the percentages very nicely.

He reminded me of times at Augusta of watching prime Tiger Woods, who in my era I think is the best I’ve ever watched and I definitely think McIlroy now has the potential to match him.

His composure was fantastic, he didn’t seem tense or agitated, but almost in a trance at times which, from what I’ve heard was a tactic that he decided to go with pre-tournament after reported sessions with his sports psychologist, Bob Rotella. He didn’t even talk to Bryson DeChambeau (his partner on the final round) – again another tactic, which seemed to work in his favour.

I think we’re going to now see some of the best golf of his career over the next couple of years – he’ll be riding this wave for a good few weeks and this momentum could take him into the PGA Championship, with him being around 5/1 (and obviously the favourite) to win.

I’ve got to admit, it’s been a while since I thought about golf, but it suddenly occurred to me that the US Masters is gradually creeping up on us.

I have fond memories of the US Masters over the last 25 years or so (now I really feel old!). Especially when you consider the names that were involved back then. I don’t think there has ever been as strong or as competitive a chasing pack on the world number one as there was back then.

Tiger Woods of course was undisputed, but there were about 12 or 15 very good golfers just behind him, all of whom were very capable.

As memory serves, the US Masters teed up some of the best golf from this generation that I have seen. Sunday’s were always a treat. Watching the BBC coverage of Augusta in stunning full bloom, the dry-tonged, quick-witted Peter Allis for company and Ken Brown providing the analysis. Probably some of the best sporting coverage the BBC has been responsible for.

Notable Names Involved This Year

Despite my nostalgic musings though, this year’s edition still has considerable viewing magnetism.

World number one and reigning champion, the USA’s Scottie Scheffler is expected to feature along with number two Rory McIlroy, who will be hoping that he can finally pull on the much-coveted Green Jacket. I can’t actually believe that this is the only major that he is yet to win, so he could even be worth a bet on the nose and looks decent value with 17/2 odds.

I didn’t realise that three out of the world’s top five are from the US. Number three being Xander Schauffele (I used to get him and Scheffler mixed up!) and at number five, Collin Morikawa.

In previous years, I always got great value backing Justin Rose in another market, who generally finished in the top 10 fairly consistently.

While his outright odds of about 110/1 could be fairly pointless, I would still be tempted to stick a couple of quid on him for a top five finish at about 33/2 – afterall, he knows the course and if he’s confident, this could be great value. Even his top 10 odds of 13/2 aren’t too bad. I think the bookies obviously know that he is capable of this, hence these odds, though Augusta is a course where you need to be confident from the start. You need focus, good weather and obviously a little bit of luck.

On occasion there has been a name that has come out of nowhere to win, upsetting the odds and, based on the course, this is a possibility.

If previous winner, Jordan Spieth rediscovers his best form, then his 33/1 or so odds, could prove to be a nice little bet. Obviously, he knows the course well and has played some of his best golf at Augusta.