2007 Masters Preview
shlinklincoln April 2nd, 2007
Preview
Ah, there’s something magical about Masters week. The birds chirp a little louder, the air smells a little better and work goes by a little faster. Of course the latter is mostly due to the hours of productivity lost while watching the live Amen Corner coverage at masters.org. Thursday morning at Augusta brings a new hope for all golfers involved and an excitement “unlike any other” (do they have a copyright on that?) for the true golf fan. And the true golf fan also knows that Spring does not officially start until the first tee shot is hit on that April Thursday morning. With that said lets take a look at the 2007 Masters.
I’m riding a nice streak of my own heading into the Masters. I have correctly picked the winner for two straight weeks. Nevermind that the favorite won both times, it’s still an impressive streak. I fully intend to continue “the streak” this week, though I will not be picking the favorite. Watch out Tiger! Planer’s on a roll.
(Which reminds me of the “Planer Roll,” a unique staple of mine in the world of EA Sports Golf, but that’s a story for another day)
Adam Scott had an impressive (if not unorthodox) win last week at the Shell Houston Open. Scott came to the 18th with a one shot lead over Stuart Appleby……….and hit his drive in the water. But as it would turn out Scott made an amazing 48 foot putt to save par and win, while Appleby hit his second shot in the water and ended up with a double bogey. Scott caught a break for sure, but also made the shots (or putts) when he had too.
The win moved Scott into 3rd in the World Rankings, with some momentum for the first major of the year. The same monentum carried Phil Mickelson last year, winning the BellSouth Classic the week before he put on his second green jacket. (Remember that moment, months before Winged Foot, when it seemed Tiger’s dominace may have been ending?) Scott will be in contention again this week, though I do not see him putting on his first green jacket.
Tiger is no doubt the favorite yet again. This year marks the 10 year aniversary of his historical first win at Augusta. And no doubt you’ll hear CBS talk about it a lot (but probably not as much as Johnny Miller tooting his own horn during the U.S. Open coverage. Did you know Johnny Miller won the 1973 U.S. Open?) but I don’t think it can be overstated. Tiger’s 1997 Masters win did change golf. It changed the equipment, it changed the courses and it changed the sponsor money. Basically it made golf cool. And we’ve been tuning in every Sunday ever since.
While I do not think Tiger will win this week I would like to see him in the final group, with my pick to win it all……………………drumroll…………..Phil Mickelson. What would be more epic then a Tiger/Phil final pairing on Sunday? (Maybe only a Nicklaus/Palmer pairing) How about a Tiger/Phil final pairing, with Els/Furyk/Scott/Singh in the groups right ahead. That would make for an awesome Masters Sunday.
Other names that will be on the leaderboard during the weekend will be Howell III (Augusta native), Henrik Stenson and Paul Casey. All of whom are playing great golf this season, and all of whom have a realistic shot to win.
But when it really comes down to it, I don’t know what exactly, but something points to Phil winning for the second straight year at Augusta. Both Phil and Tiger have had up and down years. But Phil has been practicing for Augusta for a month. I’m sure Tiger has too. But Phil has been practicing harder. Phil NEEDS to win this one, to take out that nasty Winged Foot taste. And that’s what I bank “the streak” on, “that Nasty Winged Foot Taste.” Think I’ll put it on a bumper sticker.
Plus it would be cool to see Phil put the green jacket on himself.
I want to wish everyone a Happy Masters Sunday and may all your Masters Pool/Calcutta picks place. And may the drama come down to the final putt on 18.
The 2007 Masters
Augusta National Golf Club - Augusta, Georgia
Tuesday Misc.
This is so cool. Check out the Masters Calcutta put on by the Golden Tee community.
Place your bets by 1 pm pdt. Wednesday.
Good luck!
Instead of an auction, where only one person (or consortium) can own a player, a Parimutuel has pools of money for each player. In other words, you can bet as much or as little as you want on as many players as you want. To make a parimutuel bet on a player, simply click the “Place Bet” button for the player you are interested in.
But, wait! Here’s the part that caters specifically to the high rollers: As in a regular calcutta, you still have the opportunity to completely own a player outright by overbidding the whole amount staked so far. Simply press the “Outbid owner(s)” button for the player you are interested in.
There will be 4 payouts at 40%, 30%, 20% and 10% of the total pot.
The amount that YOU win as an individual is based on what your ownership percentage is. Here’s an example:
You have $30 on Tiger Woods who ends up winning the Masters. Lets say the total prize pool (sum of all the bets) was $5K, and Tiger’s pot totalled $300. The people who bet on Tiger are each paid out a piece of the $2K for him winning (40% of the total pot). Since you had 1/10th of him, you would win $200.
Example of an “Outbid”:
if Tiger was $200 (of small bets) you could buy him whole by bidding $210. However, people can still buy into Tiger’s pool after an outbid takes place, so don’t be discouraged. Remember, the idea is that everyone can take part, whether you’re a high roller or just looking to wager small amounts.
• Deadline: The calcutta ends Wednesday April 4th at 4:00 PM Eastern.
• Payment: Margo Townsend AKA “Midi” will be handling the collection of money and prize payouts. Accepted payment methods are Paypal and Checks. We will post the information after the betting closes.
Please remember the One Hour Rule:
• The One Hour Rule: This rule is put into place to squash any attempts to sandbag Outbids at the last minute. If an Outbid is placed between 3:00 PM and 4:00 PM Eastern on Wednesday, April 4th then an additional hour of bidding time will be added for the player being bid upon. This will continue to happen as long as Outbidding for the player continues. Please do not abuse this feature. If bidding continues into Wednesday we will have to break some legs!
Example: If someone places an Outbid on Tiger at 3:36 PM, then the deadline is extended to 4:36 for Tiger. If someone outbids again at, say, 4:09 PM, then the deadline is extended again to 5:09 PM, etc. Note that this only applies to Outbids. Regular parimutuel bets do not extend the deadline on a player. Make sure to keep your eye on the site (and/or your e-mail) once the one hour rule is in effect to make sure you have a chance to buy another piece of a player if there has been an outbid on them.
• Betting Minimum: Each player will begin with a bet of no less than $10. Each increment bid raised thereafter must be in multiples of $10 per bid.
• The Field: There will be no Field bid.
• Prize Structure: Four prizes, split will be 40%, 30%, 20%, and 10% of prize pool.
• Sign Up: You will be required to register before you place a bid. PLEASE, ONLY USE YOUR REAL NAME!!!
• Email Notification: You will receive an email notification indicating that your bet has been accepted. You will also receive an e-mail notification when someone places an Outbid on a player that you had action on.
Website: http://www.0verfiend.com/ben/MastersCalcutta/
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Ever wonder who wrote the “Masters” song? A song unlike any other………
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Monday Misc.
The only website you need to know this week is http://www.masters.org. Besides the awesome Amen corner coverage starting on Thursday they will be showing live coverage of Tuesday’s press conferences and interviews from the Par 3 contest on Wednesday.
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Here’s some Masters trivia to get your mind into Masters mode:
http://www.funtrivia.com/playquiz.cfm?qid=73898&origin
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I just started reading a great book by Curt Sampson entitled “The Masters: Golf, Money, and Power in Augusta Georgia.” Though I have not finished it (I think I have 20 books I’m currently “reading”) I highly recommend this book if you are curious about the history of Augusta National.
