The 2021 Masters is upon us. After months or years, depending on how you view the November Masters, of waiting spring is here and we head back to Augusta. I shall group the entire field into tiers and at the end tell you, the people, who will win the green jacket.
Enjoy the Vibes: Danny Willett, Lanto Griffin, Matt Jones, Sebastian Muñoz, Zach Johnson, Brendon Todd, CT Pan, Mackenzie Hughes, Bernd Wiesberger, Brian Gay, Charl Schwartzel, Henrik Stenson, Martin Laird, Michael Thompson, Hudson Swafford, Stewart Cink, Bernhard Langer, Fred Couples, Jim Herman, Jimmy Walker, Robert Streb, Tyler Strafaci, Vijay Singh, Charles Osborne, Ian Woosnan, Joe Long, Jose Maria Olazábal, Larry Mize, Mike Weir, Sandy Lyle
This list is full of tour also rans, guys on expiring exemptions, and former Masters champs who are here for the Champions Dinner and a nice stroll. The most these guys can hope for is a solid first round that may see their name on the big leaderboards. Playing 72 holes is a victory for any of these guys.
Darkhorses: Abraham Ancer, Max Homa, Shane Lowry, Brian Harman, Jason Kokrak, Justin Rose, Matt Kuchar, Si Woo Kim, Harris English, Matt Wallace, Matthew Wolfe, Carlos Ortiz, Christian Bezuidenhout, Francesco Molinari, Gary Woodland, Ian Poulter, Marc Leishman, Robert Macintyre, Victor Perez, Cameron Champ, Dylan Fritteli, Phil Mickelson, Ryan Palmer, Kevin Kisner, Kevin Na
None of these golfers will win. I tell you this to protect you. The odds will look good, but don’t waste your money. Phil Mickelson ain’t winning this thing. You probably haven’t heard of most of these guys. This ain’t the John Deere. Stay away. Yes at least one of these guys will make a run, but remember, they will not win.
Sleepers: Jason Day, Joaquin Niemann, Sergio Garcia, Billy Horschel, Bubba Watson, Louis Oosthuizen, Corey Conners, Will Zalatoris
All of these golfers are between 60-1 and 95-1. Horschel and Garcia stand out as the in-form players in this group. Garcia has won here before, but he’s missed the cut the last two times he’s played. (He was out of the November Masters with COVID.) Horschel has been playing well this year and just won the Match Play. He’s a great iron player which bodes well on a second shot golf course.
Studs: Patrick Cantlay, Xander Schauffle, Brooks Koepka, Collin Morikawa, Patrick Reed, Tony Finau, Viktor Hovland, Cameron Smith, Daniel Berger, Sungjae Im, Webb Simpson, Lee Westwood, Tommy Fleetwood, Hideki Matsuyama, Matt Fitzpatrick, Scottie Scheffler, Adam Scott, Tyrell Hatton
The winner will probably come from this group. These guys are all elite golfers that enter every tournament thinking W. This list is filled with major champions and horses for the course, but I want to focus on 3 of them.
Brooks Koepka- When healthy there is no one you look at before Koepka. Unfortunately he hasn’t been healthy lately. He hasn’t played in two months because of an injury and while he’s still in the field, his ultimate status is a question mark. All that being said I fully believe he’ll be in contention come Sunday.
Patrick Reed- The 2018 champion has been on the periphery since his win at Torrey Pines. His game isn’t a great fit for the course, as he’s not long or particularly accurate with his irons. There is no reason to believe he will contend. And that’s exactly how you know he’ll be there. Reed is always there lingering under the surface just waiting for his chance to piss off the golf world. I love him.
Lee Westwood- I admit this is a sentimental pick, but there are good reasons for liking his chances. He has a great track record and his form has been excellent of late. Never forget that in 2016 a Westwood in much worse form finished T-2. Every year there is that one fan favorite that rides the momentum all week and I believe in Westwood.
Favorites: Dustin Johnson, Justin Thomas, Jordan Spieth, Bryson Dechambeau, Rory Mcilroy
All of these golfers are under 20-1 to win. DJ is the defending champ and #1 in the world. After a strong start to the year he’s been struggling of late, but there’s no reason to think he won’t be there Sunday afternoon. Thomas is riding high after his win at The Players, but I don’t like him here. He’s always got a big miss in him and that will kill him this week. Spieth might be the true favorite. He loves this course and is riding a wave of great form. The only concern is that he won last week and only two people in the last 60 years have won The Masters after winning the week prior. There are no mysteries as to why Dechambeau is a favorite, but I hate his course fit here. He is just not a good enough iron player to win at this course. Don’t forget that just because length helps here, that is actually a second shot golf course. There is no reason to think this will be the week Rory completes the career Grand Slam, so that probably means that this will be his year.
Fit Him For the Green Jacket: Jon Rahm.
New father alert. That’s right Rahm’s son was born last week and he is primed and ready to win that first major. Rahm is one of only two players in the field with three straight top 10’s at Augusta and his game is a perfect fit for the course. Long off the tee, accurate with his irons, and with deft touch around the greens it’s obvious why. I believe Rahm will win three green jackets in his career. It’s time for Rahm to break through at a major and I believe this is the week.
So there you have it. That’s a tiered rundown of the field. I’ll be happily accepting all adulation come Sunday when Rahm is wearing the Green Jacket. I’ll be posting recaps after every round so check those out as well.