US Masters 
/ Ralph Ellis / 04 April 2012 / Leave a Comment 
Will Rory be squeezed out by the likes of Donald and Westwood?
"If you’re feeling patriotic you can back an English winner at between [4.0] and [6.8] in the Winning Nationality market."
Rory McIlroy tees off alongside the man who got the best view of his 2011 meltdown at Augusta. The in-form Irishman shouldn't be fazed but, whether Ralph Ellis is backing him to claim the Green Jacket, is another matter...
If there's one thing worse than having a nightmare day on a golf course, it's playing with somebody who's having a nightmare day. There are only so many times you can mutter "bad luck" to them when another tee-shot curls its way into the trees, or a two-foot putt lips the hole and runs six feet down the slope.
If you're playing well yourself there's a danger you start to feel guilty at your own good shots. And even if you are Mr Ruthless, the disruption to the rhythm of the game inevitably takes its toll on your score too.
Yet while everybody focused last year on Rory McIlroy's meltdown at The Masters, few showed much sympathy for his playing partner Angel Cabrera as they went round Amen Corner together and the young Northern Ireland star fell apart. Maybe the coverage was different in Argentina, but back here we barely noticed the burly guy with the ringside view of arguably the most spectacular collapse in golfing history. The second story was that Tiger Woods almost made a challenge. The fact that Charl Schwartzel won was almost an afterthought.
Yet Cabrera was just as badly affected. Don't forget the reason he was in the final pairing with McIlroy was because at the start of that fateful Sunday he was the closest contender, just four shots behind the lead. And at one point the Argentinian even shared top spot before he too couldn't sustain the pace and he finished up seventh.
It's a rich twist of fate that when McIlroy begins his 2012 Masters at 06:42 our time tomorrow afternoon, he'll have Cabrera alongside him again, together with Bubba Watson. (Rory, incidentally, is [2.1] favourite to win the three ball). If you'd wanted a test of how he would handle his Augusta demons, it couldn't have been organised any more fiendishly than if a red guy with a tail and a pitchfork had turned up to make the draw. Not only does he have to wait all day to start, he then gets to meet the man who shared his agony.
The hope for McIlroy is that he has said and done all the right things in the run up to this Masters, and is in magnificent form. He looks relaxed, and his putting has improved beyond recognition thanks to his work with Dave Stockton. Whether that makes him worth backing at [8.0] to win the tournament is another matter.
I'm more inclined to look at the claims of Luke Donald, who doesn't get the same huge publicity but has quietly worked his way back to the top of the world rankings. Prices of [4.5] for a top five finish and [17.0] to win the Green Jacket both look attractive. Lee Westwood, at [5.7] and [23.0], offers value too. If you're feeling patriotic you can back an English winner - which also gives you the option of Justin Rose who is in good form - at between [4.0] and [6.8] in the Winning Nationality market.
Five things you might not know about Angel Cabrera
1. Born September 1969 in an impoverished part of Cordoba, Argentina, he was three years old when his handyman father Miguel split from his mother who worked as a maid, and he was left in the care of Miguel's mother.
2. He started caddying at the age of ten at the Cordoba Country Club as a way of helping put some food on the family table, and then learned to play golf by competing for money against the other caddies.
3. He has two sons who are both excellent golfers - the oldest, Federico, caddied for him at last year's Masters and was also on his bag when he won the Cordoba Open in Argentina.
4. He's known as 'El Pato', the duck - a reference to his huge feet which leave him walking with a waddle like gait (and not Chris Waddle!).
5. He used to smoke heavily and said that while others had a sports psychologist, he had a packet of Marlboros. He gave up three years ago and now chews gum instead.
From Tea Olive to Holly - all the holes at Augusta rated for you...
Can Charl get his Masters defence off to a strong start? Will Louis produce the goods at Augusta? Does Rickie have a chance against Rose and Immelman? Is Cabrera going to find either Rory or Bubba too strong? For Dan...
Romilly Evans discusses the showdown between Masters favourites Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy. Does our man believe that an outsider could upset the odds?...
No comments:
Post a Comment