McDowell thrilled: Graeme McDowell sat through a Golf Channel special on Sunday night that recalled Ben Crenshaw's win in the 1995 US Masters, a victory that came a week after he had acted as pall bearer to his mentor Harvey Pennick.

On Monday, he got to meet the man known as "Gentle Ben" on the practice range where the American congratulated the 25-year-old Irishman on his good play of late. "Have a good week," added Crenshaw.

So, it was almost with a touch of fate that Crenshaw should get the chance to see McDowell up-close and personal in competition. McDowell, playing in his debut Masters, has been paired with Crenshaw for the first two rounds. South African Tim Clark - who partnered the Portrush golfer for the opening two rounds of the Players championship at Sawgrass - makes up the three-ball.

"I actually guessed I would be paired with a former champion. But Crenshaw? Wow! I sat through the television programme of his win the other night. His win in '95 was such an emotional occasion, what with Harvey Pennick being buried the week before. You could understand when he finally let go of all that built up emotion on the final green. It is a great draw and I can't complain. It's just superb and I'm thrilled."

McDowell has spent the past few days getting acquainted with the nuances of Augusta National, and played 14 holes with Padraig Harrington on Tuesday.

"I'm learning as I go along. Padraig was a great help, he knows an awful lot about the course . . . I'm not itchy to get going, as my game is gearing up by the day. But I know there will be a few butterflies in my stomach come the tee-time. I should be fine, though. I couldn't have asked for a better grouping in my first Masters."

Caddies in suits

One of the traditions of the Masters is that each caddie wears a distinctive all-white jumpsuit.

Although the first Augusta caddie uniform was an all-herringbone suit that made its Masters debut in 1946, today's jumpsuit - which first appeared on the scene in 1950 - is a 65-per cent polyester, 35-per cent cotton blend designed to maximise ventilation while staying wrinkle-free for the television cameras.

The suit is made by International Uniform Inc in downtown Augusta. In fact, it's possible to walk in and order your very own white jumpsuit - but not one with the Masters logo on the right breast pocket: Augusta National is fiercely protective of its trademarks.

Standard jumpsuit sizes range from X-small to XXX-L, although David Robinson - who stands at 7ft 1in (216cm) - got one even bigger when he caddied for his friend Corey Pavin in the par-three tournament.

For the tournament, the Masters logo and the player's name and number are all screened onto patches and attached to the suit via Velcro, which means the suit can be bleached without the green lettering fading.

Numbers are assigned by the order in which players register for the week (with the exception of the defending champion, who is always offered number one), so fans can tell who has done the most homework by the low digits of early arrivals.

Walrus loses grip

Craig Stadler, aka "The Walrus", joined in the skipping of tradition on the par-three 16th hole only to have the crowds cheering him for all the wrong reasons. In practice rounds, players move to the front of the tee and skim the ball across the water with the aim of making the green.

Stradler, though, was good-naturedly booed by spectators after one particularly poor attempt to skip the ball . . . which led to him using his iron to rile the crowd. Unfortunately for Stadler, he lost his grip on the club and let it fall into the water whereupon his caddie Jeff Dolf unzipped his jumpsuit and jumped knee-deep into the lake in search of the club. Alas, the search was in vain.

Harmon hails Clarke

Butch Harmon is convinced Darren Clarke has the game to win a major, if only he can show more patience - and better decision-making - on the golf course. "He's definitely got all the tools to win a major. It's just that he gets in his own way occasionally mentally and his decisions on the course are not as sharp as those immediately above him in the world rankings.

"But he's played Augusta a lot now and you should see that experience coming out this week. This course is good for Darren, but the one aspect that is going to hurt him more than anything this week is patience.

"Augusta requires tremendous patience, you have to stay in the moment of each shot because of how difficult the shots are into the greens."

Harmon has also been impressed with Clarke's improved fitness - if not completely enamoured with his line of clothing. "His talent is unbelievable and he has done a great job on his fitness . . . it's just that his clothes are hurting a bit."

Harrington honoured

Padraig Harrington has been named as the European Tour's golfer of the month for March, following his maiden US Tour win in the Honda Classic where he defeated Vijay Singh and Joe Ogilvie in a play-off.

The Dubliner won out ahead of Ernie Els who won back-to-back titles in the Dubai Desert Classic and the Qatar Masters.

"It's a great honour to win this award," said Harrington. "On a personal level, it was a great thrill to win the Honda Classic and enjoy the rewards of all the hard work I have put in. It underlined the benefits of perseverance."

Weather watch

The sun has shone on Augusta National all week but - don't you know it? - as soon as the tournament is due to start, the forecast is for thunderstorms to hit the area. So far this season, the US Tour has been plagued by bad weather with no fewer than eight of the 14 tournaments so far affected.

Fortunately, the forecast for the rest of the tournament is a good deal better with a 60 per cent chance of showers tomorrow, a 30 per cent chance of showers on Saturday and a sunny day forecast for Sunday. If that forecast holds up, the tournament - just as it did in 2003 when the scheduled first round was washed out - should finish on schedule on Sunday.

This is due to the smaller than normal sized field at the Masters.