Not just about Phil and Tiger this time

GOLF:THE ROAD which fronts Augusta National Golf Club is called Washington Road; not in honour of the country's capital in DC, but rather after a smaller historical city of that name in Georgia which has the distinction of being the place where the Confederacy was dissolved in 1865, long before the US Masters came into being. Old history versus new.

Nowadays, though, the impact of this Major can be found all along Washington, as the tournament breathes life into the city for one week of the year. In the teeming bars and restaurants; in the huge trucks – Nike, Titleist, Bridgestone and the rest – crammed into the parking lots directly across from Magnolia Lane; and on the giant advertising billboards along the route, the most prominent of which is one advocating the merits of Rolex watches.

Fittingly, perhaps, the image used in the ad is of Phil Mickelson. Has his time come again? Perhaps, perhaps not.

For sure, Mickelson is the name most frequently bandied about as the one everyone has to beat. He loves the course, they say. Which he does: three Masters titles (2004, 2006 and 2010) testify to that. He is the form guy, they say. Which he is: Lefty comes into the tournament on the back of a win in the Houston Open on Sunday last. And, yet, on this course of all courses, no one man is invincible. This is a tournament that is more open than Mickelson’s followers might believe.

Indeed, Graeme McDowell – the US Open champion intent on bringing his own unique style to the big show – made an interesting observation of the course after finalising his preparations.

“You can play the golf course slightly more aggressively than in years gone by . . . scoring looks to be on their minds, 15-under or 20-under-par (could be) winning this week.

“From what I can see, it’s not the scary Augusta test,” he said.

If that’s the case, that Augusta really is set-up for scoring, then even more players than might normally be the case will be brought into the winning equation.

In fact, the statistics from the US Tour this season would indicate this is far from an open and shut case. There have been 14 different winners – in 15 events – on the American circuit so far this season, with Mark Wilson the only repeat winner.

What it shows is that no one player has been dominant, and it confirms the viewpoint that, since Tiger Woods’s demise, there is an openness about the destination of Majors as much as regular tournaments.

McDowell’s win in the US Open, Louis Oosthuizen’s in the British Open and Martin Kaymer’s in the US PGA would provide some evidence to back up that view.

But, then, Augusta is Augusta. It is different to all other Majors. It is the first of the year and the only one which returns, year in and year out, to the same course. Between them, Mickelson and Woods have won six of the last 10 Masters here.

Yet, as Angel Cabrera, Trevor Immelman and Zach Johnson proved – between 2007 and 2009 – there is always a way, and that different games can all achieve the same aim.

What is different this time is the European hand is especially strong. Martin Kaymer, the world number one, has yet to decipher the code to crack Augusta – but Lee Westwood, the world number two and runner-up here last year, and Luke Donald, number four in the world, who was third in 2005, have banked some good memories from the past. That will help.

And, of course, the Irish challenge is a genuine one. McDowell has blossomed since his US Open win at Pebble Beach last June and, if there was some concern when he shot a first round 80 at the Bay Hill Invitational last month and subsequently retired to the range with a training device attached to his arm, it would seem he has arrived here in fine fettle.

“I’ve dreamt of putting the Green Jacket on my back Sunday afternoon here, and I’m definitely very driven to do the job this week.”

He added: “You know, the more I come here, year by year, I feel like my awareness and my knowledge of this course continues to increase. I feel as comfortable on this course as I’ve ever been . . . it’s about pacing yourself physically and mentally and having a little bit left in the tank on the back nine on Sunday. It really is about hanging around in major championships and not shooting yourself out of it. you just have to hang around.”

Pádraig Harrington, too, and Rory McIlroy have also come in with suppressed confidence.

Harrington’s top-10 finish in Houston provided sufficient evidence to indicate he is close to where he wants to be. And whilst acknowledging the consensus view about Mickelson’s favouritism, the Dubliner remarked: “The way he played last week, all the parts of his game are strong. But I’d be very happy if I’m the guy who makes him play that way (in the Masters). That would be my goal.”

Mickelson, for his part, has decided to again put two drivers into his bag. His reasoning is based on the weather forecast, which is for beautiful conditions throughout the tournament rising to the high 80s at the weekend.

“Because it’s going to be so warm, I won’t need a three-iron or a hybrid . . . so I’ll put in a second driver and that will allow me to carry the bunkers on (holes) two and eight. They both draw and fade the same, but I have an inch longer shaft and different loft (on one) and it goes about 15 to 20 yards farther.”

It is that sort of attention to detail which has served Mickelson so well in past Masters’ tournaments.

It would seem he is the man to beat. But he is beatable. And while his record is a formidable one, there are a number of camps ready to pitch their own arguments: the Europeans, without a win here since Jose Maria Olazabal in 1999, have a strong case; the Australians, who have never won, have a number of contenders; and the next generation of Americans – with the likes of Nick Watney, Dustin Johnson and Bubba Watson to the fore – have the potential to break through.

It’s not just about Phil and Tiger.