Masters Tuesday

The Masters is more like a vast Edwardian garden party than a golf tournament. ALISTAIR COOKE

Well, more like a vast Edwardian garden party to which we've not been invited....  But I'm not bitter.

Not the most promising start to the week:

Afternoon update: At 3:21 p.m., Augusta National announced that it was closing the course due to a storm. It rained pretty steady for about 20 minutes. 

An announcement went out on Twitter but that was essentially for the fans not on site, as there is a no cell phone policy on the grounds.

As for the remainder of the week:

Tuesday’s forecast calls for an 80 percent chance of showers, according to weather.com. Wednesday is expected to be sunny with temperatures in the 80s. Rain is also forecast for Friday morning (40 percent chance), Saturday afternoon (30 percent) and Sunday (60 percent chance of thunderstorms in the afternoon).

Prayers to the weather gods are appreciated....  as are prayers to the SubAir gods.

Don't Know Much About History..... Writing at Masters.com, John Steinbreder has the back story of how The Masters became The Masters™:

Deciding to start an annual golf tournament for the best amateur and professional players in the world was the easy call for Augusta National and Masters co-Founders Clifford Roberts and Bobby Jones. The hard part was naming the event, which was slated to be

staged for the first time in the spring of 1934. 

At a meeting in New York in the office of club member W. Alton “Pete” Jones, Roberts had proposed that the competition be called the Masters Tournament. “But Bob (Jones) vetoed such a designation on the grounds that it was too presumptuous,” Roberts wrote in his 1976 book, “The Story of the Augusta National Golf Club.” So, they named it the Augusta National Invitation Tournament instead. 

Hard as it may be to believe all these years later, that was what the competition was called the first five times it was staged. And it wasn’t until 1939 that they formally adopted the Masters Tournament moniker – and only after Jones had, in Roberts' words, “relented.”

That first sentence is strange, since The Masters was Plan B.  Plan A was to host the 1934 U.S. Open, but the USGA refused to play ball.

As much as Jones disdained the name, it had more than its fair share of early adopters. In fact, Roberts relates how a mutual friend of theirs, Tom Barrett, was so disappointed that the competition was not being called the Masters that he told a newspaper reporter friend about it. That person then wrote a story on the matter, which was one reason several members of the media referred to the event during its inaugural playing as the Masters Tournament. 

“By 1935, most of the media did so, and in 1936, no one except the Club called the Tournament by any other name than the Masters,” Roberts wrote.

Jones played in the event through 1948, but here's a look at that 1939 program:

Also at the tourney's website is this Bill Fields tribute to His Ownself:

When Dan Jenkins covered his first Masters Tournament, Harry Truman was president of the United States, a loaf of bread cost 16 cents, Perry Como topped the charts and Jack Nicklaus was 11 years old. 

It was 1951. Jenkins was a 22-year-old Texas Christian University student and golf-team member moonlighting as a sportswriter for his hometown newspaper, The Fort Worth Press. His beat essentially was Ben Hogan, a native son, who made Jenkins’ maiden journey to Georgia a memorable one with a two-stroke victory. 

“The press tent was indeed a tent and open at two sides to catch the breezes,” Jenkins said in 2018 of the first time he reported from Augusta National. “Table-model typewriters were provided, but you brought along your own portable in case the one at your assigned seat wasn’t worth the struggle. Light bulbs dangled from the ceiling above. A crowded row of Western Union operators was on hand to send your stories, often turning them into puzzles in their haste. You kept a carbon copy to use when calling the office to clean things up. Almost everybody smoked every waking moment.”

Here's a wonderful shot of the youngster in the iconic Quonset hut:

So very sad:

This will be a different kind of Masters, the first one without Jenkins since 1950. 

“Jack and Gary start the Tournament with their tee shots, but for the press a big part of Thursday was seeing Dan come in and take a seat on Thursday,” said Associated Press golf writer Doug Ferguson. “That’s when you knew the Masters had begun.”

Here's Dan's usual seat this week:

They're not making them like this any longer....

So, it turns out that the gang at Golf Digest are hoarders.... in this instance, a very good thing indeed.  Alan Pittman explains:

Golf Digest has been around for nearly 70 years, and during that time we’ve amassed a substantial library of photographs, books and golf memorabilia—all carefully indexed. Or so we thought. Late last year, our offices moved to a different floor at our headquarters in New York City, and while packing up, we found an unmarked box of black-and-white 35mm film negatives. Among them were nearly 1,000 images of the Masters dating from the late 1950s through the early 1970s. After some investigating, we discovered that these pictures were taken by the magazine’s earliest editors, including co-founder Howard Gill and Managing Editor John May, who routinely doubled as photographers and reporters at tour events. 

The 47 images here have likely never been published, and they reveal golf stars and galleries of the Madman Age. Palmer, Nicklaus and Player are impossibly youthful and just beginning their dominance. Snead and Hogan are still competitive. There are no corporate logos on the shirts. Augusta National looks scruffier. We see the first glimpses of the Merry Mex, Lee Trevino, a precocious young pro in Lanny Wadkins and the rakish ladies’ man Raymond Floyd. This collection of lost-and-found images bring back the memories of heroes and heroics not to be forgotten.

You'll want to see them all, though I'm most interested in how different the golf course looks, such as these of No. 12 in the late 1950's:

I guess azaleas hadn't yet been invented....

And crowd patron control:

That's Sam Snead walking to the 18th tee in the early 1960's, but it sure seems he'll be hitting into folks, no?

One Of Life's Enduring Mysteries.... This header will no doubt tug at your heartstrings:

Masters 2019: One year after his Masters victory, the joy is still missing for Patrick Reed

How can that possibly be?   Kidding, Mr. Table-For-One seems to like it like that:

It is hard to remember now how spectacular Patrick Reed’s Masters victory was. He came within three shots of the tournament scoring record while dusting more celebrated contemporaries Rory McIlroy, Jordan Spieth and Rickie Fowler. It should have been one

of golf ’s most mythologized breakthroughs, the gritty triumph of a one-time Monday

qualifier who had simply willed himself into a green jacket. But Reed was never going to get the fairy-tale treatment. He had already carved out his role as golf ’s antihero, and winning the Masters laid bare the dysfunction that has long surrounded him: Reed’s parents live in Augusta but, along with their daughter, were forced to watch the final round of the Masters on TV at home because of a long simmering estrangement. Reed won two national championships for Augusta State, but during last year’s Masters Sunday the crowd was never on his side. When he brushed in the winning putt the reaction from the knowing fans was so restrained as to be awkward.

Reed has made golf fandom much more complicated, since he — practically alone among the game’s media-savvy stars — often displays the uglier human emotions. Only a couple of weeks before the Masters, a phone-wielding citizen journalist had caught Reed bitching to a rules official who denied him a free drop: “Guess my name needs to be Jordan Spieth.” The pettiness and jealousy was particularly noteworthy because Spieth had long been Reed’s rah-rah partner at the Presidents and Ryder Cups.

And then he can't understand why Jordan doesn't want to partner with him?   he's just a strange, damaged personality....  The guys will put with that when he's Captain America, but not when he sucks as he has all year (not to mention at last year's Ryder Cup).

Taking The Fifth....  Andy Johnson with the major change to the golf course since last year:

The latest hole to go under the knife is the par-4 fifth, which will debut a new tee box and bunker placement for the 2019 Masters. The hole now stretches to a stout 490 yards, 40 yards longer than in 2018, and features a new bunker placement. The left-side fairway bunkers—long the key to unlocking the best approach to the fifth’s intimidating green—return closer to their original position, and newly planted trees will mimic the hole’s design from 1934. 

Originally, No. 5 demanded a 240-yard carry over the left bunkers, but this eventually became an afterthought for players in the post-persimmon era. In 2003, ANGC moved the bunkers 80 yards forward. More work on the hole came in 2011— the tee was extended back five yards, and the bunkers were moved further into the fairway. These changes narrowed the driving corridor and made the tee shot far more difficult, killing the hole’s strategic value.

It was the acquisition of the property containing the old Berkmans Road that allowed this change, an attempt to restore the original MacKenzie shot values.  

Really, the only play was a safe 3-wood off the tee, leaving a short iron approach. No. 5, one of MacKenzie’s strokes of genius, had become a snooze fest. The proof lay in the scoring stats: Since the last round of alterations to the fifth, it has seen a rise in pars and a decrease in the number of bogeys and birdies. 

The newest round of changes at No. 5 signal a commitment, as Chairman Fred Ridley remarked during his inaugural pre-Masters press conference,“to protecting the shot values Mr. Jones and Alister MacKenzie devised.” The new tee box, moved back forty yards over what used to be Old Berkmans Road, and the new bunkers situated to create greater width (almost twice the room as before), will again offer players a very real risk/reward opportunity. 

Players will be forced to either challenge the bunkers to gain a shorter approach into the green or play safe to the right. (Playing short of the bunkers is an unlikely option—it will leave a semi-blind approach from well over 200 yards.) The safe play right of the bunkers will fit into MacKenzie and Jones’ intended design: Give players a clean look at the green and a good lie, but from 200- plus yards and from a poor angle.

Now can we talk about doing the same for No. 7?

Who Ya Got?....  Everyone and their second cousin wants to help me in Bluto's Masters Pool, though I'm pretty sure I'll finish last as usual.  After all, I'm the '62 Mets of fantasy golf and all....

Ryan Herrington offers up his Nine Sneaky Masters Picks....Gee thanks, Ryan, but sneaky?

Yeah, that's the ticket....  I mean, what's the guy done lately, besides winning The Open Championship, winning at Bay Hill and going 5-0 in the Ryder Cup?

I'll give him Poults, Sneds and Woodland, but Leishman?  Who doesn't pick him at majors?

Max Adler spends some time in the caddie shack and, a la Reservoir Dogs, assigns them amusing aliases for their picks.  I think we can all agree that Carolina Cherry should seek professional help:

CAROLINA CHERRY: Bubba Watson. Hits it long, hits it right to left and loves putting on fast, undulating greens—I don't know why, because I grew up near where he did, and it was hard to find greens anywhere faster than six on the Stimp. Bubba's the kind of guy who plays way better when he's comfortable, and something about Augusta puts him at ease. Maybe the clean tree lines help him see clearly how he needs to shape shots. He'll finish his career with four green jackets.

I love watching Bubba play, but I'm guessing he'll end his career with just the two.

This guy hasn't watched much golf lately, methinks:

WHITE DOGWOOD: Jordan Spieth. I don't care how bad he's playing, he'll find it at Augusta. The place is special to him. It's truly amazing how he reads and putts those greens. I was fortunate to see it up close a few times in recent years, just how aggressive he gets with the putter there. He has some demons on 12, but he's strong and will overcome them and win another Masters, for sure.

The more interesting question is what happens if he doesn't find it there?

As for that guy chasing the career Grand Slam, it's a split verdict:

WHITE DOGWOOD: Yes, 100 percent. His few years of poor putting, which all the media can't talk about enough, has probably gotten to him more than he would like to

admit. He was in six final groups last year and didn't win any of those. I know it's hard to win, but we're talking about Rory Mcllroy—the most talented player in the world! Golf is better when Rory is dominating like Tiger once did. But don't count him out. He's still Rory. 

CAROLINA CHERRY: I wasn't surprised when Rory shot 74 in the final group last year paired with Reed. It's a difficult golf course. Even though Rory would seem to have the ideal game for Augusta—awesome driver, towering second shots that land hole-high and spin—the mind is a powerful thing. His past collapses there have built scar tissue that will be hard to overcome. 

FIRETHORN: The pressure's not affecting Rory. He loves pressure. He simply doesn't putt well enough to win at Augusta.

WD says he's still Rory as if that were a good thing...  The putting is an issue, but his distance control on wedges might be the more costly failing.

As for The Striped One, another split decision:

WHITE DOGWOOD: He can totally compete and win at Augusta this year. He would want nothing more than to get his 15th major there. He knows the place better than anyone—yes, even Phil. Tiger's next-best chance for a major this year will be the PGA at Bethpage, where he's won before. It's a long course that requires great iron play and a great short game—both his strengths—and PGA setups are always the fairest test. I don't know much about Royal Portrush, and neither does Tiger, so I'd say the U.S. Open will be his third-best chance. Pebble Beach will be the shortest major course this season, and it will probably have the tightest fairways. Perfect for Tiger's stinger 2-iron. 

JUNIPER: I'd rank Tiger's chances at the majors in 2019 as (1) U.S. Open—don't think I need to expound given what he did there in 2000. (2) Masters—he knows where he can and can't spray the driver. (3) Open Championship—won't have to hit a lot of drivers, and the success last year at Carnoustie will give him confidence. (4) PGA—I wouldn't count him out from any tournament, but I've got to put this last. Some cold New York May weather and that 43-year-old body won't mix.

Juniper doesn't expect cold weather at Pebble (has he ever heard of marine layers?) and Portrush?  This guy might harsh your mellow:

CAROLINA CHERRY: Call me crazy, but I think Tiger's more due to miss the cut than ever. Obviously, his record here is all-time, but it just feels like his driver woes can pop up anytime now. You can't hit into the quadrants of those firm greens when you're out of position. And Father Time is catching up with his putter.

 Lots of great B&W photos as well....

The Golfweek writers share their picks, and Shack is all in on Tiger:

Tiger Woods

So what if his five 2019 starts have only produced a T-10 in Mexico City and a T-5 in the match play. He took his game up a notch in dusting off Rory McIlroy during that match play where it became apparent that the entire early season schedule was designed to prepare for this week. His surprisingly conservative approach going against the modern bomb-and-gouge approach was about Augusta, where risk-taking is overrated until Sunday. The 75 percent swing used so far was about not hurting himself and building to peak form this week. Remember, no one’s asking anymore if he’s got the swing figured out and there hasn’t been a mention of chipping yips in years. Woods knows Augusta better than anyone in the field except maybe Phil Mickelson, and even at his lowest points finished in the top 20 here. Tiger Woods will win his fifth Masters this week.

Geoff Shackelford

Also a surprising amount of love for Rory, given that these folks likely saw his lame attempt last year.

I wonder if Geoff considered the implications of this Luke Kerr-Dineen infographic:

We might know all we need to about his chances if we see him hit his tee shot on No. 1 on Thursday.  He hasn't hit that fairway since the Carter Administration.... As for the key to him winning, well, last I heard, low score wins.

This one got my attention for sure:

How to win your 2019 Masters pool

It turns out that it's really easy:

Masters week is upon us and with that comes the biggest week of the year for golf gambling. 

There are more golf-organized contests or pools than any other week during the year.

So, how do you win your office pool? 

Just like the NCAA Tournament, find the Virginia, or better yet, the Texas Tech of this year’s Masters field.

Now you tell me....

Lots of press conferences today, so we'll cover those and all else tomorrow.