Washington---Rory McIlroy's quest for a first Masters win and a complete set of Grand Slam titles alongside the growing doubts over Tiger Woods are the main talking points ahead of the Masters. But there are other intriguing story lines that could develop. Here are just five:
-- Can Bubba make it three out of four?
Augusta National brings out the best in the volatile but likeable Watson and he won there in 2012 and last year. A third triumph this year would make him just the second man alongside Jack Nicklaus to have won the Masters three times in four years. The select band of players who have won three times also include Arnold Palmer, Tiger Woods, Sam Snead, Jimmy Demaret, Gary Player, Nick Faldo and Phil Mickelson.
-- Can a European player win the Masters again?
No European player has won the Masters since Jose Maria Olazabal in 1999, that victory bookending a 20-year period of 11 wins for Europe starting with Seve Ballesteros in 1980. No one can explain why this has happened at a time of big successes for European golfers elsewhere. There are currently six Europeans in the world top 20 including number one and two Rory McIlroy and Henrik Stenson.
-- Will the record of oldest player to win a major title be smashed?
Currently that mark stands to Julius Boros who won the 1968 PGA Champinship at the age of 48. The record has been under challenge increasingly in recent years most notably by the then 59-year-old Tom Watson at the 2009 British Open. But the general belief is that the Masters is the likeliest venue for it to happen. Last year Freddie Couples led a record six 50-and-over players into the weekend. He stayed in contention deep into the final round before fading down the back nine.
-- Will we see a first Asian winner of the Masters?
South Korea's Y.E. Yang remains the only Asian player to have won a major title at the 2009 PGA Championship, but it was countryman KJ Choi who came closest to winning at Augusta National with three top 10 finishes. Best bet this year would seem to be Japan's fast-rising Hideki Matsuyama, currently ranked 16th in the world and playing in his fifth Masters.
-- How will Dustin Johnson perform after time out?
The big South Carolinian took six months off from the game last year to deal with unspecified personal issues but has returned with a bang this year following the birth of a son with wife Paulina Gretzky, daughter of the hockey legend. Johnson promptly won the WGC-Cadillac Championship last month in superb fashion and he is back up to seventh in the world rankings. He hs yet to win a major title despite coming close at the PGA Championship and the British Open.
AFP
