SnoTap Masters Preview: Five Americans to Watch

As we did last year, Bryan Reynolds and Charlie Tritschler will be previewing The Masters all week. Charlie will cover the international side of things, Bryan will take the American side, our tee time draft and we will talk about The Masters a bit on our Tapping The Keg Podcast. So let's have fun and look dumb!  

1) Phil Mickelson- Hard to believe a guy whom dropped out of an event two weeks with injury can be a favorite but give me Phil. The three-time Masters champion will be look to get back at the top of the leaderboard for the first time since 2010. Just to warn you, with Tiger on the bench, this year may be Phil heavy, as he is celebrating the 10 year anniversary of his first breakthrough win at Augusta. The best stat I have heard all week involved Phil’s finishes here in regards to even number calendar years. Going backwards from 2012, Phil has finished third, first, fifth, first, first, third, seventh, 12th and third. I know that mean nothing but knowing Lefty, I would bet that trend.

2) Matt Kuchar - It is pretty well known or agreed upon that Kuchar is probably the best remaining player we have yet to win a major championship. I would love to see Kuch change that this week. His steady game is well suited for the fairways at Augusta and he is used to these weather trends, being that he attended school at Georgia Tech. Kuchar notched a top 10 here last year, and a top five finish in 2012. He is top five on Tour in Par 4 performance and has always been one of the best scramblers around. Matt’s biggest hurdle this week will be overcoming his letdown loss last week, but a win here would be the perfect medicine.

3) Webb Simpson - Charlie may have seen this pick, as I am already invested in a good Webb performance here. Besides that, I think Webb has what it takes to win another major and he is due. He performed poorly in his last four stroke play events but started the 2014 campaign hot with four top 10’s, including a victory at the Shriners. Webb is yet to finish higher than 44th here but I expect him to capitalize on his length off the tee and use the putter to stay in contention over the weekend.

4) Keegan Bradley - Continuing with the trend of major winners due to breakthrough, I am ready to see Keegan make a move here. Part of this pick may be because I would love to see him on the 18th green, staring down a winning putt come Sunday, but Keegan has the tools to succeed here. Last year, he had a terrible Saturday round of 82 but fought back to shoot a 69 to finish the tournament. That is the kind of resiliency he will have to reflect on to get some momentum going in his favor

5) Dustin Johnson - If Kuchar is the best player yet to win a major, Dustin has to be right behind. Ever since DJ let the PGA slip through his hands at Whistling Straits, he has yet to break through, but Augusta fits his eye. Johnson fired a opening round 67 here last year but hit some bumps in the middle rounds to fall to a 13th place finish. It is no secret he is a cannon off the tee but he will have to control the accuracy and capitalize with his irons to get the W. Dustin’s performance stats are off the charts, leading him to be ranked as the #1 all-around player so far this year. It is about time he turns all those numbers into a major championship.

Bryan