The final round of the Masters is underway. Lee Westwood, (tee time at 2:40 ET) the tournament leader, is looking for his first majors win. One stroke behind him is Phil Mickelson (also 2:40), who is in pursuit of his third green jacket. The PGA’s Twitter feed notes that of the past 19 Masters winners, 18 have come from the final group, which bodes well for these two.
The 2010 Masters: A Complete Round 4 Preview
Also in contention for the green jacket are K.J. Choi and noted golfing enthusiast Tiger Woods, who tee off at 2:30.
SB Nation’s golf expert, Ryan Ballengee from our blog Waggle Room. is on the scene in Augusta. He reminds us that this is a course that rewards many skills, and that driving accuracy is not one of them:
Where driving accuracy is a premium in a US Open of maybe PGA Championship, driving accuracy is not much of a factor this week. The leaders' driving stats out of the 47 players to make the cut:
Our three seemingly serious contenders are in the bottom 10 for driving accuracy, something you would NEVER see at a US Open or PGA Championship.
- Lee Westwood- T-37 ; 66.67%
- Phil Mickelson- 41 ; 64.29%
- Tiger Woods- T-37 ; 66.67%
- KJ Choi- T-27 ; 71.43%
- Fred Couples- T-10 ; 80.95%
Mr. Ballengee also notes the effect that the crowds can have on the players.
Roars can influence the way everyone on the course is playing because no matter how many times a Tour star tells you, “All I can control is my own ball”, they are still concerned with how the other players are doing. For example, after Mickelson holed out on 13, Ian Poulter on 11 was forced to back off his putt due to the roar. I think Mickelson has the edge over Westwood on Sunday due to his flair for the dramatic, and his ability to ride momentum from the fans. These “roars” are another reason why we’ve seen so many historic comebacks at the Masters.
Be sure to check out the rest of the post at Waggle Room.
As the day progresses, stay tuned to this StoryStream for updates. You can follow the live leaderboard here.
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