Compiled by PHILIP REID
McDowell’s not superstitious . . . but he’s still not going to chance it
GRAEME McDowell isn’t superstitious by nature, but he has decided to bypass the traditional eve-of-Masters Par 3 competition. “That’s a pretty tough ball and chain to have to wear for the rest of the week,” observed the Ulsterman of whoever actually wins the Par 3, which reputedly is jinxed. Nobody in history has gone on to claim a green jacket in the same year as winning the precursor.
G-Mac’s reasoning in giving the Par 3 a miss has more to do with his preparations rather than any real superstition. “I’ve had two long weeks (playing Bay Hill and the Tavistock Cup) and I am just trying to conserve my energy . . . if I am going to compete this week, you have got to have reserves in the tank. It is going to be a mentally and physically demanding week if you are going to be in the mix.”
One other thing that McDowell has decided to miss out on is the Golf Channel’s wall-to-wall build-up coverage of the Masters. Why? “They spend their evenings telling us how hard this is going to be and how many Tiger is going to win by.”
ONE challenge that the defending US Masters champion faces off the golf courses each year is to produce a menu for the Masters Club Dinner. Charl Schwartzel went with a South African-themed fare last night that included a traditional barbecue of beef, lamb chops, chicken breast and boerwors (sausage).
Back injury forces Johnson to pull out
WORLD number 12 Dustin Johnson is out of this week’s Masters because of a back injury.
With no reserves for the opening major of the season, Johnson’s withdrawal reduces the field from 97 to 96 players.
It comes only a day after he told his followers on Twitter: “Oh yeah . . . it’s MASTERS week!!!!” His next message, however, was today’s, in which he said: “First I have to apologise to the fans and sponsors. With heartfelt regret, I won’t be playing in the Masters due to a tweaked back.
“You have no idea how much I wanted to walk the fairways at Augusta and fulfill what I’ve been practising for!! I’ll have to root my buddies!”
The five-time PGA Tour winner underwent off-season knee surgery immediately after the Presidents Cup in November. His last tournament was the WGC-Cadillac Championship at Doral.
Woods and McIlroy form a mutual appreciation society
TIGER Woods and Rory McIlroy have joined each others’ fan clubs.
“The first time I got a chance to really sit down and talk with him was this year at Abu Dhabi when we played nine holes (in practice) together. Then we ended up being paired together (in the tournament). That was fun, I think, for both of us,” said Woods of first meeting up with McIlroy.
And, of McIlroy’s ability to bounce back from his Masters travails to win the US Open, Woods said: “It was cool to see someone learn from their mistakes like that and apply it. He just had one bad round. it happens to everybody and we have all been in those situations . . . he learned from it, applied it and ran away with it. That was pretty impressive.”
The feeling was mutual apparently, with McIlroy rejecting any suggestion there was tension between the two. “I feel like I have a good relationship with Tiger. It’s pretty good . . . yeah, I said a couple fo things back then (at the time of Woods’ affairs) that maybe just got a little carried away or got caught up in the moment. But I feel like the relationship I have with Tiger is a good one.”
McIlroy finds a brand new position on his golf bag for Unicef at Augusta
RORY McIlroy has a new look bag on show here at Augusta, giving pride of place to Unicef.
“A branding position became available on my bag and I knew straight away Unicef was the correct fit. I try to help out whenever I can and I saw this as an opportunity to give some added exposure and hopefully increase awareness for such a great cause.”
McIlroy made a trip to Haiti last June and is planning to undertake a similar humanitarian trip later this year, possibly to the Far East.
McIlroy, meanwhile, has taken the European Tour’s Golfer of the Month award for March after winning the PGA Tour’s Honda Classic in Florida to become the second youngest holder of the world number one title.The 22-year-old took the award despite Luke Donald taking back top spot a fortnight later with victory at the Transitions Championship.
Tomorrow
1:45pm - Scott, Van Pelt, Kaymer
1:56pm – Stricker, Harrington, Cink
3:35pm – Woods, Jimenez, Bae
3:46pm –Donald, F Molinari, Watney
4:41pm – Oosthuizen, Wilson, McDowell
5:58pm – Singh, Westwood, Furyk
6:20pm – Couples, Clarke, Ishikawa
6:31pm – Toms, Choi, Garcia
6:42pm – Cabrera, McIlroy, B Watson
6:53pm – Mickelson, Mahan, Hanson
Friday
1:34pm – Oosthuizen, Wilson, McDowell
2:40pm – Singh, Westwood, Furyk
3:13pm – Couples, Clarke, Ishikawa
3:24pm – Toms, Choi, Garcia
3:35pm – Cabrera, McIlroy, B Watson
3:46pm – Mickelson, Mahan, Hanson
4:52pm – Scott, Van Pelt, Kaymer
5:14pm – Stricker, Harrington, Cink
6:42pm – Woods, Jimenez, Bae
6:53pm – Donald, F Molinari, Watney
