You Must Give the Masters A Chance

by Malec Fahmy ’20

Sure, maybe nobody under the age of fifty but a few of us care about golf, but this week, more than any other week of the year, is when viewers turn into watch the most coveted tournament in the world. The Masters.

This year is the most highly anticipated Masters tournament in the last ten, maybe 15 years. First, four-time champion Tiger Woods is returning from the Masters for the first time since 2015, where he finished in a tie for 17 with a bad back. He returns this year with his best play since 2013, where he was named Player of the Year and won five times on the tour. He has two straight top five finishes this year and has looked better and better in each tournament he has played.

Speaking of Woods, his old rival turned friend is 47-year-old, three-time Masters winner  Phil Mickelson who is coming into this years master with three top fives including his first win in five year at the WGC-Mexico Championship. The two played a practice round on Tuesday and the crowd were as full as a Sunday at a regular tournament.

To get away from the old guys, the No. 1 player in the world, Dustin Johnson, is being overlooked in all the hype. Johnson is beginning to round fully back into form after having to withdraw from last year’s Masters after a freak accident. Along with the world number one, Jordan Spieth is coming off a tied third-place finish at last week’s Houston Open, where he seems to have regained his magical putting abilities that willed him to run away with his first green jacket in 2015.

If these superstars are not enough for you to turn the TV on and watch, here’s a few other story lines. Rory McIlroy is aiming to be only the sixth golfer in history to complete the career grand slam (winning ever major championship). He is coming off a win at Bay Hill in the Arnold Palmer Invitational in March.  Justin Thomas, the reigning player of year and defending PGA Championship winner, is playing arguably the best golf at the moment has already won two tournaments coming into this year’s Masters.

One more player to watch is two-time champion Bubba Watson, who has already won two times on tour this year. His unique swing, long driving, and incredible shot-shaping skills is just another reason that you should tune into watch the Masters this year.

This year, even more so than in the past, has so many compelling storylines that there is no clear cut favorites to take home the green jacket. So if you are not into golf, give it a try this weekend when the best of the best will compete to win the biggest tournament in golf. If this does not get you into the sport, I do not know what will.