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AUGUSTA, Georgia. – What is needed to win a green jacket as a Masters tournament champion?
The guys have to hit the ball off and accurately, bravely pull their second shot to avoid Rae's Creek and the other traps, and of course, make an outstanding hit on some of the smoothest greens in the world.
A winner must do all this by controlling his emotions in front of vast collections of customers and knowing that there is a good chance that the course will unfold differently every four days.
Who has what it takes to win the Masters this week? Here are each of the 87 players on the field, divided into groups ranging from legitimate contenders to past champions to amateurs:
Level I: The guys who can win
Here are the legitimate contenders to win the Masters tournament. They have games, guts and nerves to handle four rounds under pressure on one of the most treacherous tracks in the world.
Rory McIlroy
For the fifth time in Augusta, McIlroy will attempt to complete the grand slam of his career by winning a green jacket. He finished tied for fifth place in 2018 after posting a score of 74 on Sunday.
Dustin Johnson
He is arguably the most talented player in the world, but his experience in Augusta is mainly marked by heavy jet-skis and difficult stairs. His best result in eight tries is a tie for fourth place.
Previously, each putt looked at Tiger – especially the ones he really, really needed – he was making. This is no longer the case. Is it trust? Paternal time? Something else?
All you need to know about the Masters 2019 tournament, including the results and day-to-day analyzes of Augusta National.
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Justin Rose
Rose is almost a modern day Lee Trevino. He has 11 top-25 and five top-10 finishes at Augusta, including the finalists in 2015 and '17.
Bubba Watson
His courage, his creativity and his cool distance on the T-shirt make him a pretender to win a green jacket for the third time. Will his putting – he is ranked at the 162nd place wins – will prevent him from doing it?
Brooks Koepka
The three-time major champion said his dramatic weight loss cost him distance. The good news: it will have no problem finding meat-and-three in Georgia.
Francesco Molinari
The Italian was one of the best golfers in the world until his defeat in the WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play semifinal last month. His best result at the Masters is a tie for the 19th in 2012.
Jon Rahm
The talented Spaniard finished last year with a pair of top-5 in major tournaments and seemed better equipped mentally to finish the big events until his debacle Sunday at The Players. He had a fourth solo at Augusta last year after opening with a 75.
Rickie Fowler
The best player in the world to have never won a major tournament would probably want to lose that title. He finished second at the Masters in 2018, one less than champion Patrick Reed.
Jason Day
Day tied for second and a third solo in his first three Masters appearances, but he has not been that good since. Let's hope his back is resistant for four rounds.
Paul Casey
The Englishman won the Valspar Championship last month after a sad appearance at The Players. He rallied to finish tied for 15th place in the 2018 Masters after scoring 74-75 in his first two rounds. Before that, he had three consecutive top-10s in Augusta.
Bryson DeChambeau
Who can not wait for DeChambeau to ruffle the feathers of the traditionalists by leaving pins in the holes while building the most respected golf course in the world? At least he deliberates on the tees.
Justin Thomas
Augusta National was until now Clemson of the former star of Alabama. He scored only one score in the 60s in 12 career rounds at the Masters and did not finish better than a draw for 17th place.
Tommy Fleetwood
The Englishman is still looking for his first win on the PGA Tour after nearly missing out on The Players. He finished tied for 17th in his second Masters participation in 2018.
Tiger Woods
The four-time winner of Masters continues to give us clues about his former dominance, though without results. He finished 32nd in 2018, with three equal runs or less.
Phil Mickelson
The triple Masters champion tries to become the oldest champion, more than 48 years old. After finishing tied for 36th in 2018, Lefty wants to give Jake Owen his money.
Level II: Hopefully …
Here are the candidates for the black horse to don a green jacket Sunday. The list presents the former champions, including the most recent, whose matches are in progress until now this season. Will everything come together in Augusta?
Jordan Spieth
The 2015 Masters Championship match still seems to be a work in progress, especially on the tee, but Augusta National seems to be getting the better of himself. He entered the tournament in 2018 in a similar depression, but finished third in solo, two shots behind Reed.
Tony Finau
Finau dislocated his ankle while he was celebrating a hole-in-one in the Par 3 contest – before putting it back in his place – to finish tied for 10th place.
Xander Schauffele
Schauffele has two wins and six top 25s in 10 PGA events this season. He tied for 50th place in his first appearance at the Masters in 2018.
Louis Oosthuizen
The South African was a finalist in 2012 with a memorable albatross and a one-hit pit – without JB Holmes' ball – in 2016. He missed the cup four times and did not finish higher that a draw for the 12th place in his nine other appearances.
Adam Scott
The 2013 Masters champion has a top 10 at Augusta since he beat Angel Cabrera in the playoffs to win the green jacket. He tied for the 32nd year last.
Matt Kuchar
The former star of Georgia Tech will find welcoming galleries in Augusta, where he is four of the top 10 in his last seven appearances.
Hideki Matsuyama
The Japanese golfer finished in the top 20 four times in a row at Augusta, including 19th in 2018. He has posted scores in pairs or better in 12 of his last 16 games at Augusta.
Patrick Reed
The reigning Masters champion has not won anything since his win over Fowler, Spieth and Rahm last Sunday. He has a top 10 in 10 starts this season.
Sergio Garcia
The Spaniard followed her Masters title in 2017 by missing the cut with a record of 81-78 last year. It was only the 11th time that a defending champion missed the cup the following year. Worse, Garcia's 36-hole total score of 15 is the worst of a defending champion. Of course, the fact that he recorded in the 15th match-15 in the first round did not help.
Marc Leishman
The Australian won the CIMB Classic in October and finished in the top 10 in half of his 10 tournaments this season. He had a ninth solo at the Masters in 2018.
Cameron Smith
The 25-year-old Australian has hinted at his huge potential by shooting a 66 last Sunday to finish fifth at the 2018 Masters.
Kevin Kisner
The Aiken, originally from South Carolina, grew up about thirty kilometers from the gates of Augusta National and would like nothing more than winning a green jacket. He won some of the best players in the game to win the WGC-Dell Technologies Play Match.
Brandt Snedeker
Snedeker has found his game and is back after an absence of one year. He finished tied for 15th in four of his ten Masters appearances.
Henrik Stenson
Stenson finished tied for fifth place at the Masters last year, with four consecutive innings under par. He struggled this season before reaching the round of 16 at Play Match WGC-Dell Technologies.
Level III: Hey, miracles happen
They are the long shots. This group includes a handful of aging old champions, a hometown favorite who makes his long-awaited comeback and beginners.
Rank IV: Happy to make the cut
We do not expect them to be part of the contenders, unless something magical happens. Some probably said the same thing about Danny Willett, Charl Schwartzel and Trevor Immelman before their unexpected victory.
Martin Kaymer
Stewart Cink
Andrew Landry
Aaron Wise
Michael Kim
Kevin Tway
Adam Long
Patton Kizzire
Kyle Stanley
Alex Noren
Kiradech Aphibarnrat
Lucas Bjerregaard
Justin Harding
Shane Lowry
Corey Conners
Shugo Imahira
Rank V: Former champions
They are here only because they own green jackets and have earned the right to come back to play. Their days of competition are, however, in the rearview mirror.
Angel Cabrera
Trevor Immelman
Sandy Lyle
Larry Mize
Jose Maria Olazabal
Charl Schwartzel
Vijay Singh
Mike Weir
Danny Willett
Ian Woosnam
Rank VI: Amateurs
These are the new neighborhood kids and the most talented (and luckiest) amateur players in the world. They are trying to do what Ryan Moore (13th in 2005), Hideki Matsuyama (27th in 2011) and Bryson DeChambeau (21st in 2016) did before becoming professionals.
Viktor Hovland
Devon Bling
Jovan Rebula
Takumi Kanaya
Alvaro Ortiz
Kevin O'Connell
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