Westwood #1 in the World

English golfer Lee Westwood attained the top spot in the world golf rankings on Sunday, replacing Tiger Woods, who had held the top spot for 281 weeks.  Westwood captured the top spot while on his couch in his England home, as Martin Kaymer’s 21st finish at the Andalucia Masters this weekend assured Westwood the #1 ranking.  Woods remains at #2, and Kaymer moves to #3 in the world with the finish.  Phil Mickelson and Steve Stricker are 4th and 5th in the rankings, respectively.

Westwood is the first player to attain the top spot in the rankings since Vijay Singh held it in June 2005, and Westwood is the 4th golfer to be ranked #1 without a major championship on his resume.  However, Westwood has contended in nearly every major in the past 2 years, barring the 2010 PGA Championship, when he was not healthy.  He has finished in the top 16 in each of the last 5 majors he has played, and finished in the top 3 in four of these major championships.

This weekend, at the HSBC Championship, in China, each of the top four players (Westwood, Woods, Kaymer, and Mickelson) will have an opportunity to claim the top spot next weekend.

Ryder Cup Day 1 Update

The play at the Ryder Cup began this morning in Wales, 2:45AM EST.  The four American and European group began play in the pouring rain, until conditions became unplayable after about 1 hour.  There was an 7+ hour rain delay, which prevented the completion of 2 rounds of competition as was originally scheduled.  Instead, the morning fourball groups couldn’t even finish the first round, as the first group (Mickelson/Johnson, Westwood/Kaymer) finished 12 holes, and the last group (Overton/Watson, Donald/Harrington) completed only 8 holes.  Through the first day at Celtic Manor, the Americans lead the Europeans 2.5-1.5, a great start for the underdog USA team.

Current pairings, Scores*

Westwood/Kaymer (EUROPE) 1 UP THRU 12 over Mickelson/Johnson (USA)—1 point EUROPE*

Cink/Kuchar (USA) 2 UP THRU 11 over McIlroy/McDowell (EUROPE)—1 point USA*

Stricker/Woods (USA) ALL SQUARE THRU 10 with Poulter/Fisher (EUROPE)—.5 points each*

Overton/Watson (USA) 1 UP THRU 8 over Donald/Harrington—1 point USA*

*—Scores not official until full round is completed (tomorrow)

Prime Performers Today:

Steve Stricker (USA) has hit several big putts to keep his match square (Ian Poulter has been impressive and fired up for the Europeans in the same group)

Jeff Overton (USA), the newcomer, has continued to play very well under the radar.

Stewart Cink (USA)has been the most impressive player for the Americans thus far, and his play in rainy, windy conditions reminds this writer of his performance at Turnberry in 2009.

Lee Westwood (EUROPE) and Martin Kaymer (EUROPE) work like a well oiled machine in that group, which is why they are two of my favorite players and two of the best in the world.  Westwood seems to be at 100% even after the calf injury which has kept him off the course since early August.

Golfers who have struggled thus far:

The Luke Donald and Padraig Harrington pairing (EUROPE) has looked extremely sluggish, and is lucky to be only 1 down after 8 holes to Jeff Overton and Bubba Watson (USA).

Phil Mickelson and Dustin Johnson (USA) began their rounds atrociously, but have rebounded to cut the once 3 hole deficit down to only 1 with 6 to play tomorrow.  Mickelson began the round wearing two golf gloves due to conditions, which isn’t his norm, and turned his round in the right direction once he removed the extra glove.

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Stay tuned for continuous coverage of the Ryder Cup after every day of play.

Ryder Cup Begins Tomorrow

Tomorrow, the United States team will begin its defense of one of the greatest titles in golf, the Ryder Cup, at Celtic Manor in Wales.  Two years ago, on our home soil at Valhalla, the United States team shocked the Europeans and Captain Sir Nick Faldo to claim the Ryder Cup. Now, the Europeans are playing on home soil and would do anything to acquire the 14.5 points necessary to claim the Ryder Cup back for Europe.  The Ryder Cup is one of the most intense, emotion-filled events in all of golf, and the fans are in for a treat this weekend.

Each team is composed of 12 players:

USA- Captain (Corey Pavin)           Europe- Captain (Colin Montgomerie)

Phil Mickelson                              Martin Kaymer

Hunter Mahan                               Lee Westwood

Tiger Woods                                   Padraig Harrington

Rickie Fowler                                 Luke Donald

Stewart Cink                                   Ross Fisher

Bubba Watson                               Rory McIlroy

Matt Kuchar                                   Graeme McDowell

Jim Furyk                                        Peter Hanson

Steve Stricker                                  Miguel Angel Jimenez

Dustin Johnson                            Ian Poulter

Zach Johnson                                Francesco Molinari

Jeff Overton                                    Eduardo Molinari

The Europeans look to be the favorites, as the European team has combined for more worldwide wins than the USA team has this year, and has more recognizable names on the roster.  However, the Americans are looking to defend the title, and have a lot of up-and-coming players on the roster.

Friday Morning Fourball (Best Ball) pairings (arranged by first tee time):

1. Phil Mickelson/ Dustin Johnson vs. Martin Kaymer/Lee Westwood

2. Stewart Cink/ Matt Kuchar vs. Rory McIlroy/Graeme McDowell

3. Steve Stricker/Tiger Woods vs. Ian Poulter/Ross Fisher

4. Bubba Watson/Jeff Overton vs. Luke Donald/Padraig Harrington

My Predictions: Johnson will carry the Americans in the first group, Mickelson will have a few close chips for birdies, and the Americans will win the 1st group impressively, with Lee Westwood struggling due to his significant time off with his calf injury.

In the second group, the Americans have their work cut out for them in the European Rory McIlroy.  He is one of the most explosive players in golf and will thrive in this type of this environment.  I expect McIlroy to carry the second group for the Europeans.

The third group will be a rout for the Americans.  Ian Poulter and Ross Fisher are two of the weaker links on the European team, and Stricker and Woods are two of the top 5 golfers in the world.

The fourth group is a toss up.  The Americans are led by Bubba Watson, the longest hitter in golf, with relative unknown but consistent performer Jeff Overton also in the group.  Luke Donald has been playing very well, but Padraig Harrington has really been struggling, and was a reach pick by Captain Montgomerie.  I think the Americans will win a close match in the fourth match, and with my above predictions, I think the USA will have 3 points and the Europeans 1 point after the morning session.

My Ryder Cup Winners and Big Performers:

The United States will once again shock the Europeans, this time on their soil, to claim the Ryder Cup for the 2nd straight time.  Big factors for the United States will be Dustin Johnson, arguably the best golfer on Tour in big tournaments this season, Zach Johnson and Steve Stricker, two of the best putters on Tour, Jim Furyk, the most recent winner on Tour, and Tiger Woods, who is looking to avenge a lost season in 2010.

Some USA golfers who I believe will struggle this weekend include: Rickie Fowler, a gutsy captain’s pick with which I did not agree, Stewart Cink, a golfer who simply hasn’t done it in 2010, another shaky captain’s pick, and Matt Kuchar, a golfer who has been very good this year but struggled mightily last weekend when the pressure was put upon him.

Key players for the Europeans will be Martin Kaymer (one of my favorites), who is as consistent as it gets in the game of golf, and who rolls in 15-20 footers like it is nothing, Rory McIlroy, one of the best talents in all of golf, and Luke Donald, a golfer who is often undervalued but who is very consistent and has had a good year in 2010.

Some Europeans that I believe will struggle include: Ian Poulter, a golfer with whom I am simply not confident to perform consistently, Padraig Harrington, a golfer who, like Cink, hasn’t done anything recently, and Lee Westwood, who is still recovering from a calf injury which has sidelined him for months this season.

Furyk Wins Tour Championship, FedEx Cup

With a 2 1/2 foot par putt separating Tour veteran Jim Furyk from a victory at the Tour Championship, and his first FedEx Cup victory, Furyk reversed his Srixon hit to prevent water from dripping from the bill in the rainy conditions, calmly approached the putt, and sank it.  At this point he pumped his fists into the air multiple times before embracing his longtime caddy, “Fluff,” in celebration of a year’s worth of accomplishments.

With the victory Sunday, Jim Furyk accomplished multiple new feats.  The win marked the first season in his career in which he won 3 tournaments.  It also marked his first Tour Championship, and finally, perhaps most importantly, it was Furyk’s first FedEx Cup victory, placing him among the distinguished company of Tiger Woods and Vijay Singh as the only players to have won the FedEx Cup in the 4 year history of the season-long championship.

The win by Furyk was great for the sport of golf.  For a sport in which not all patrons are thrilled about the nature and setup of the FedEx Cup, the drama that it produced and the reaction it garnered from one of the Tour’s most even-keeled players in Furyk tells the whole story.  Furyk’s reaction shows that players care about the FedEx Cup, that it is a fit reward for a year’s worth of accomplishments, not simply a tool to artificially enhance or dramatize the last month of the season as many have been convinced.  It shows that golf fans want to and can get behind this new competitive element of the game, and allows them to follow their favorite players over the course of a full season, not simply 4 days a week in the tournaments.  This new element of golf has been and will continue to be very successful, and it could not have been exemplified any better than the drama and emotion that was delivered at East Lake Golf Club this weekend.

Congratulations to Jim Furyk for a big step forward in his career, and congratulations to the sport of golf for a great success in the FedEx Cup.

Tour Championship Begins Tomorrow

Tomorrow, at East Lake Golf Club in Atlanta, the final event of the PGA season will begin.  The Tour Championship is the tournament that will decide the winner of the 2010 FedEx Cup (golf’s year long championship).  The FedEx points standings and the tournament rules change for this tournament specifically each year, and here are some guidelines on how the tournament will be run this weekend:

The FedEx Cup points standings have been reset for the sport’s final tournament of the season.  After last weekend’s BMW Championship, points leader Matt Kuchar had a 636 point lead on 2nd place Dustin Johnson, a 1,486 point lead on 3rd place Charley Hoffman, and a 3,363 point lead on 30th and final Tour Championship qualifier Bo Van Pelt.  Now, after the points reset, Kuchar has a 250 point lead, a 500 point lead, and a 2,290 point lead over these players, respectively.  Kuchar officially has 2,500 points now (down from 4,935 after the BMW Championship), and the 2nd through 30th players also had their points reset from there in a waterfall style by reducing the golfer’s score ahead of them.

More clearly stated:

Player                          Previous Points                  Reset Points

1. Matt Kuchar                    4,935                                   2,500

2. Dustin Johnson              4,299                                   2,250

3. Charley Hoffman            3,499                                  2,000

4. Steve Stricker                  3,372                                   1,800

5. Paul Casey                        3,015                                   1,600

…………………..                      ………                                   ………

28. Nick Watney                 1,584                                    230

29. Kevin Streelman          1,575                                     220

30. Bo Van Pelt                   1,572                                     210

The reset is done each year regardless of the points standings so that each player has a chance to win the FedEx Cup with a victory at the Tour Championship.  The winner of the Tour Championship will be awarded 2,500 FedEx Cup points.  The reset of the points plus the awarded point total for winning this tournament ensures that, with a victory, each of the top 5 golfers in the points standings are guaranteed the FedEx Cup.  Second place will receive 1,500 points, third will receive 1,000 points, 4th will receive 750 points, 5th will receive 550 points, and the point totals continue to decrease, until 30th (last) will receive only 205 points.

Again, if any player in the top 5 in the points total entering the Tour Championship wins, that player can not be passed in the points standings and will win the FedEx Cup.  If the 6th seed wins (Jason Day), then the only other player who could win the FedEx Cup is the points leader (Matt Kuchar) with a 2nd place finish.  If the 7th seed wins (Luke Donald), then only the 1st and 2nd places in the points could take the FedEx Cup from Donald (with a 2nd place finish).  If the 8th seed wins (Ernie Els), the same applies as with the 7th seed except that the 3rd place player in the points standings could tie with a 2nd place finish.  If the 9th seed wins (Martin Laird), then 1st, 2nd, or 3rd in the points standings could win the FedEx Cup with 2nd place, and 4th in the standings could tie with a 2nd place finish.  If any of the 10th-14th seeds win, then any of the top 4 seeds could win the FedEx Cup, and the 5th seed could tie.  Finally, if any of the 15th-30th seeds win, then any of the top 5 seeds could still win the FedEx Cup, and the 6th seed could tie.

Take a deep breath.  That’s a lot of information.  A good way to think of it is this: Winning the tournament is almost essential to winning the FedEx Cup.  If a player doesn’t win the tournament, he will need to have been very highly seeded, still place in the top 5, and will need a very low seed to win the tournament to have a chance.

Last year (the first season of reset points), Phil Mickelson won the Tour Championship, but lost the FedEx Cup because then points leader Tiger Woods finished 2nd in the tournament.  Tiger still won the FedEx Cup because Mickelson was outside the top 5 in the points standings entering the tournament, and therefore could not make up the points differential.  The points reset makes things much more interesting for golf fans, because the year before, Camilo Villegas won the Tour Championship, but lost the FedEx Cup to Vijay Singh, who finished T22 (out of 30) at +9.  Vijay still won the FedEx Cup solely because of his huge points lead entering the tournament.  The beauty of the new system is that the FedEx Cup winner is guaranteed to finish in the top 5 at East Lake this weekend, and there won’t be any Vijay Singh type scores winning the Cup on Sunday.

My pick:  For the purposes of my prediction I will assume that the winner of the tournament will win the FedEx Cup.  I could be wrong, but I think it is the safest way to predict a winner.  One of the hottest players that no one is talking about is Jason Day, as he has flown under the radar and has been very impressive down the stretch in the regular season and into postseason play.  I’ll take Jason Day as my sleeper pick to win the Tour Championship and the 2010 FedEx Cup.

PGA Playoffs Begin with Drama

The first round of the FedEx Cup playoffs began this past Thursday with the Barclays, the tournament where the top 125 golfers in the FedEx Cup standings battle to position themselves in the top 100 to advance to the Deutsche Bank Championship, which will be played next weekend.  Tiger Woods found himself outside the top 100 entering the tournament (112), and needed to play well this weekend to move into the top 100 and advance to next weekend.  Ernie Els led the FedEx Cup standings entering the week, and was assured a spot in the top 10 regardless of his performance this weekend.  Jim Furyk was 3rd, but dropped 5 spots in the FedEx Cup standings after he was controversially  disqualified for not making his Wednesday Pro-Am tee time.

On the first day of the tournament, Tiger Woods looked to make a Herculean climb in the FedEx Cup standings.  He shared the lead after Round 1 with a score of -6, and if the first day results held, Woods would have moved into the top 5 in the standings.  This type of climb would have been shades of Heath Slocum last year in the Barclays, who by winning the tournament moved from out of the top 100 to 3rd in the FedEx Cup standings.  However, Tiger would come back to Earth in the next 3 days.  Tiger played the final 3 rounds at -1, and finished 5 strokes back on Sunday.  This was good showing compared to some of Tiger’s recent tournaments, however, and Tiger moved to 65th in the FedEx Cup standings as a result of his Barclays performance.  If the results hold, he will be safe to advance past the Deutsche Bank to the BMW Championship, which hosts the top 70 golfers in the FedEx Cup standings.  Phil Mickelson was cut this week, but due to his good performance during the regular season, remains at 10th in the standings, and only dropped 6 spots.

The Barclays leaderboard remained very tight through the first 2 days of the championship, and on Saturday Martin Laird began to separate himself from the field.  He moved to -12 and 3 strokes ahead of 2nd place.  He was in control of the tournament, and a sizable comeback was needed from a competitor to challenge Laird for the title.  Matt Kuchar took that challenge.  Starting on Sunday at -7, 5 strokes behind Laird, Kuchar played an impressive round at -5 to take the lead in the clubhouse at -12 while Laird was completing his last few holes.  Through 17, however, Laird had a 1 stroke lead, and only needed to par hole 18 to win the Barclays and assume the top spot in the FedEx Cup standings.  Kuchar was given his shot to win the tournament after Laird 3 putted from about 20 feet on 18 to choke away his 1 stroke lead and enter a playoff with Kuchar.

On the very first playoff hole, Kuchar hit a punch shot from the left deep rough that rolled up to the back right of the green, where the ball played the ridge perfectly and rolled to about 2 feet from the hole for a tap in birdie.  Laird could not birdie the hole, and Kuchar won the Barclays thanks to his unbelievable 2nd shot on the playoff hole.  Kuchar became the FedEx Cup points leader with his victory, and leads 2nd place Steve Stricker by just under 1,500 points.  Kuchar has a big lead and a big advantage over the rest of the field, but the interesting aspect of the FedEx Cup playoffs is that next week’s Deutsche Bank winner will almost certainly climb at least into the top 10 or even top 5 in the points standings.  Kuchar needs to continue to play very well for his points lead to remain comfortable, and this makes the FedEx Cup postseason so exciting.

With the conclusion of the first round of the playoffs, there are only 3 events remaining before the FedEx Cup Champion is crowned.  This coming weekend, the Deutsche Bank Championship will be played, and the top 70 in the points standings after the tournament will advance to the BMW Championship, which will be held 2 weeks from now.  The top 30 players in the FedEx Cup Standings after the BMW Championship will advance to the Tour Championship, the final PGA event of the season.  The Tour Championship will be held two weeks after the BMW Championship (Sept. 23-26, East Lake G.C.), and the leader in FedEx Cup points after the Tour Championship will earn the title of 2010 FedEx Cup Champion.  The 2010 FedEx Cup Champion will join Vijay Singh (2008) and Tiger Woods (2007, 2009) as the only winners in the 4 year history of the FedEx Cup.

6 Guys to Look out for at the Open Championship

6 Players to Look out for at the 2010 Open Championship at the St. Andrews Olde Course, the birthplace of golf:

Stewart Cink:  The 2009 Open Champion at Turnberry, Cink is a good ballstriker and putter, and is in no mood to relinquish the Claret Jug, the most recognizable reward in golf.

Padraig Harrington (My pick to win):  Arguably the best scrambler in the game, Padraig will have a bigger advantage with this skill at the Open than he will in any other tournament all season long.  Players WILL find themselves in bad situations this week, that is just a given of the course, wind, weather, etc.  However, what is important is how the players deal with these situations, and how well they can salvage themselves when they find themselves in these spots.  A big reason I think Padraig is a player to look out for this weekend.

Martin Kaymer:  I know right, who is this guy?  Well, Kaymer has been playing for a few years now under the radar, and has played solid in multiple majors recently.  Most golf fans don’t know who he is or have vaguely heard of him, but he plays a good grind-it-out type of game that could keep him in contention into the weekend.  My sleeper pick to contend at the Open.

Lee Westwood:  The guy who contends at every major, and hasn’t been able to break through yet.  An excellent ballstriker (arguably the best in the game right now), Westwood will (as always) have to worry about putting on the treacherous St. Andrews greens.

Steve Stricker:  Why not Steve?  Arguably the most underrated big name player there is, Striker won last weekend at John Deere, and will look to carry the momentum into the Olde Course at St. Andrews.  Stricker is a very solid, crisp player with a good putting stroke and a very clean, efficient golf swing.  There aren’t a ton of variables in his game that could easily tank his tournament showing.

Tiger Woods:  He hasn’t been playing well recently, but has dominated St. Andrews throughout his career.  He has won 2 of his 3 Open Championships at St. Andrews, and has been on record saying the St. Andrews was a course built for his game.  In addition, an Open Championship without Tiger Woods to cheer for (or against) isn’t quite the same, no matter how much or little you cheer for Tiger.

Who do you, the readers, like this weekend?

Elin Files for Divorce

BREAKING NEWS:  Tiger Woods wife, Elin, is reportedly seeking a divorce settlement worth $750 million after Tiger’s recent infidelity which has made national news over the past few months.  Tiger has stated that he wants joint custody for their children, but Elin is reportedly demanding full custody.  Stay tuned for more Tiger updates on and off the course.

Lefty Dons the Green Jacket

The 2010 Masters tournament was a tournament that included many sources of drama.  Could Tom Watson or Fred Couples turn back the clock and win the Green Jacket?  Could Tiger Woods win in his first tournament back after his leave of absence?  Could Phil Mickelson win in the midst of his wife Amy’s battle with cancer?

These storylines fueled the television ratings and the public interest, but the most exciting part of the tournament, as always, was what happened on the course at Augusta National.  After the first round, Fred Couples inexplicably led at -6, and Tom Watson was tied for 2nd at -5.  Both players looked to be playing as well as they ever had at Augusta.  Tiger shot his best ever first round at the Masters and looked to be in his best position in years to win the tournament even though it was his first event this season.

In the second round, Couples and Watson fell off the lead slightly, but unheralded Lee Westwood rose to take the lead at -8, and was joined by Ian Poulter, who shot the low round of the day on Friday.  In the mix at -6 remained Anthony Kim, Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson, K.J. Choi, and Ricky Barnes, a somewhat unknown golfer who almost won the 2009 US Open. 

Then came Moving Day at Augusta.  Saturday is always an important day not necessarily to be the leader, but to be within striking distance.  Lee Westwood, my pick to win the Masters, shot an impressive 4 under 68 on Saturday to move to -11 and to assume position as the frontrunner to win the tournament.  Phil Mickelson closed the gap to 1 stroke by shooting a 5 under 67 and moved to -10.  Tiger Woods and K.J. Choi lingered at -8, Fred Couples moved back into contention at -7, and Anthony Kim was far down on the leaderboard at -5.

Then came Sunday at Augusta.  One of the most memorable days of every year.  Six players had legitimate chances to win the tournament and some point during the final round, which made Sunday extremely exciting.  K.J. Choi birdied 3 of the 5 holes from 6-10 to put himself at -12 and at one point was tied for the lead.  He appeared to be the golfer at the top of the leaderboard who was playing the best.  However, Choi bogeyed 2 straight holes down the stretch and effectively removed himself from contention.  The story of the Masters until Phil Mickelson’s final few holes was the play of Anthony Kim.  Left for dead at 6 strokes back to begin the day, Kim mounted a furious comeback in which he converted 3 birdies and an eagle from holes 13-16, and put himself at -12 to come within 1 stroke of the lead.  Kim shot par on the final 2 holes and was the leader in the clubhouse.  However, Phil Mickelson refused to give up the lead down the stretch.  In what will be remembered as one of the best shots in the history of the Masters, Phil Mickelson had an over 200 yard shot from the pine straw and had to to carry a small stream that was just short of the green.  Phil refused to lay up, and instead knocked the ball within 5 feet to give himself an eagle putt on the par 5 13th.  Although he missed the eagle putt, he made his birdie, and this inexplicable shot set the tone for the rest of his round.  Phil continued to finish the day at -7 without a bogey and -16 for the tournament.  Mickelson sunk a birdie putt at the 18th to seal his victory, and then embraced his wife Amy in a moment that will define the 2010 Masters.  Mickelson now has won 3 Green Jackets and joins elite company, as less than 10 players have ever won 3 or more Green Jackets.

The Masters is often the tournament that either makes a player’s year or breaks it.  A player’s reaction to his play at the Masters affects the way he plays the rest of the season.  These are a few players who have much to gain because of their play this week at the Masters: 

Lee Westwood- Westwood has been in contention for almost every major in the past 2 years.  He is able to perform so well in majors because of his terrific ballstriking ability.  In his postround interview, Lee seemed to be very satisfied with the way he played but disappointed in the outcome.  If Westwood continues to play as well as he did this weekend and as well as he has been playing in majors recently, he will have a very successful year and will be a favorite to win upcoming majors.

Anthony Kim- Kim has always been a player that is unafraid to play aggressively.  He avoids playing conservative golf at all costs, and this leads to many birdies, but also many bogeys.  As a result, AK is one of the most up and down golfers in the PGA, but is a dominant player when he is at his best.  If AK can continue to knock flags stiff as he did this week at the Masters, he will be primed to win a major this season and will be in contention for the FedEx Cup.

Ricky Barnes-  Barnes was a golfer who was gifted with so much talent, but early in his career became too lazy in his preparation.  He lost his game, and had to work very hard to become of professional quality again.  His most recognizable return to PGA contention was the 2009 US Open, when he contended for the championship for all 72 holes and finished only 2 strokes behind Lucas Glover.  After that tournament, fans wondered if they would ever hear of Barnes again.  His success in this year’s Masters leads one to believe that Ricky Barnes could become a regular contender in  major championships.  He just needs to continue to work hard and improve his already talented game.

The next major championship will be the US Open, which will be played June 16-20th at Pebble Beach.

Masters Round 1 Recap

Today, the Masters Tournament officially began with the ceremonious first tee shots of 3 time Masters winner Arnold Palmer and 6 time Green Jacket winner Jack Nicklaus.  The first round included the old-timers showing the younger players a few things on the course, the impressive play of international players, and the pesky issue of Tiger Woods’ return to golf.

The big story of the day was the play of older players such as Tom Watson and Fred Couples.  Couples (1992 Masters Champion) tops the leaderboard after 1 round with a 6 under 66.  Cool and calm as always, Couples thrived upon his intermediate game and his putting in his round.  Always a tremendous ballstriker, which is a necessity at Augusta, Couples was able to put the ball on the green consistently with his irons.  Couples played a very clean and efficient round, with 0 bogeys and 6 birdies.  66 was Fred’s lowest round in his Masters career.  Couples is a legitimate contender because of his ballstriking and putting ability, and has proven that Augusta is not too long for him yet.

Tom Watson had the best round of the early tee times.  Watson shot a 5 under 67, and just as Couples did, had 0 bogeys.  Efficiency was the name of the game today, and as Watson did last year at Turnberry in the Open Championship, played within himself and relied upon his approach and putting ability to put himself in the mix after 1 round.  If Watson hopes to compete for the Green Jacket on Sunday, Watson will need to putt very well in order to make up for strokes that he consistently loses on distance to the other players.

The other surprise was the play of international players Y.E. Yang and K.J. Choi.  Yang is looking to win consecutive majors, as he came back in the final round of the PGA Championship last year to defeat Tiger Woods (It was the first time Tiger had ever relinquished a lead in a major championship when leading after 54 holes).  Yang shot -5 and has shown early in the Masters that his PGA Championship victory last year was not a fluke. 

K.J. Choi is an international golfer who at one point was ranked 3rd in the world.  Choi then began to lose his confidence and did not play up to that 3rd ranking.  However, in the past year he has begun to play more effectively and efficiently, showcased by his -5 first round today, which is tied for 2nd in the tournament.  Choi seemed not to let the pressure of the pairing with Tiger Woods affect him, but instead played a very crisp round and putted very well.  A key for Choi will be whether he can put together 4 consecutive days of quality golf.  If he can do so, he will be a legitimate contender on Sunday.  Choi has shown that he has plenty of talent and ability, but consistency has been his problem in the past.

Finally, Tiger Woods returned to golf today after a leave of absence that began in December of last year.  Tiger showed no signs of rust in his first round, as he shot a 4 under 68, his best ever opening round at the Masters.  Tiger heard mostly cheers today, and was ”blown away” by the applause he received from the crowd.  Tiger was noticeably less on edge on the course than in the past.  He regularly talked and joked with K.J. Choi, only become visibly angry twice or three times, and seemed generally relaxed.  Tiger remains 2 strokes back of Fred Couples, and has put himself in perfect position to be a contender on Sunday.

If there is a player to look out for come Sunday, it is Lee Westwood.  Westwood was my pre-Masters pick to win the tournament, and I thought Lee would win because he has been in these pressure-filled situations consistently over the past few years.  He seems to always be in contention late into majors, and has always been one of the best ballstrikers in golf.  Westwood rarely makes the big mistake, and plays very efficient golf because of his ability to hit greens with so much consistency.  Westwood remains my favorite to win the Masters.

Stay tuned to the second round of the Masters, which starts Thursday morning.  Morning and early afternoon coverage can be found on Masters.com, and ESPN’s coverage begins at 4PM.