TUESDAY, APRIL 3, 2018
While our Masters contest is going on over at Facebook (you have until midnight Pacific Time on Wednesday to make your predictions) and we’re all thinking of tournament favorites, we wanted to highlight three quieter players who might make a stir this week at Augusta. Call them sleepers, if you’d like, but they each bring a pedigree and a form that could make them a first-time champion.
– Rafa Cabrera-Bello. Yes, he’s Spanish. That’s partly why we like him, for the defending champion, Sergio Garcia, reminded us of the Spanish tradition of victory here, woven through two-time winners Seve Ballesteros and Jose Maria Olazabal. But Bello also brings some key statistical strengths with him to Augusta National. He’s sixth on Tour this season in greens in regulation and third in eagles. He may be the 22nd-ranked player in the world, but if you haven’t been paying attention, he may sneak into a green jacket right before your eyes.
– Brian Harman. Since Mike Weir broke through in 2003 to win as a lefty at Augusta, Phil Mickelson and Bubba Watson have combined for five more left-handed victories. The modern power cut seems to favor the lefties and Harman comes ready to swing it from that side as well. He’s a Georgia born and a Georgie grad, so he’ll have plenty of vocal support around him. Harman is top 10 in driving accuracy and betters even Bello in greens in regulation (2nd), so he’ll manage Augusta just fine. Let’s see if he can get his putter rolling to contend as he has been, with six top-5 finishes so far this season.
– Alex Noren. You may be surprised to know that from its inception in 1934 until Ballesteros’ win in 1980, the only foreign player to win the Masters was Gary Player, who donned the green jacket three times. Since Seve, though, the list of foreign winners is lengthy, with 13 different players taking the prize. Yet none have hailed from Sweden, and Noren, with three top-3s since the calendar turned, would love to be the first. He’s top 20 in putting: strokes gained, so maybe he has what it takes to get the ball in the hole when the pressure comes on Sunday.