Fantasy Golf Picks and Predictions – The 2014 Masters

Fantasy Golf Picks and Predictions for the 2014 Masters Tournament April 10th – 13th, 2014

Note: Make sure you enter for a chance to win our free Masters Gear Giveaway here.

Tournament Preview

It’s every Tour Pro and golf fan’s favorite time of the year: The Masters.  With Tiger Woods sitting this tournament out (back injury), the spotlight has shifted to other notables such as Adam Scott, Justin Rose, and Phil Mickelson. Some experts are already calling it “anyone’s tournament” this year, with hot young stars like Patrick Reed and Jimmy Walker even taking a crack at history. And of course you can’t rule out guys like Kuchar, Dustin Johnson, Rory McIlroy, Bubba Watson and Jason Day as all the greats come into Augusta to accomplish one thing; to win the Green Jacket.

The weather will be great all week with no major threats to the event which will kick off with the inaugural Champion’s Dinner on Tuesday night, before the final practice rounds tee off on Wednesday. Here’s the full schedule of events to take place at Augusta National this week:

Monday April 7, 2014: Practice Round. Most players have been at Augusta National practicing since last week (if not playing in the Shell Houston Open). Media Day will continue with most players making their way up on the podium for pre-tournament interviews, discussing course conditions, and answering questions from the media.

Tuesday April 8, 2014: Practice Round. As warm-ups continue, the first and second tee times and pairings will be announced. The “Champion’s Dinner” will take place Tuesday evening as Adam Scott plans an Aussie-themed cuisine for his fellow champions. Although we know the dinner will feature an Australian cuisine, Scott has been keeping the specifics very quiet, mentioning only that dessert will consist of his mother’s recipe for pavlova (a meringue-based dessert). We’re giving 10/1 odds on a classic Aussie Surf N’ Turf…

Wednesday April 9, 2014: Final Practice Round and Par 3 Contest. The par 3 contest is a fun event that players partake in each year with their spouses and kids coming along as ceremonial caddies. Live coverage of this event will be broadcast at 3 pm on Masters.com and ESPN. What a great treat it is each year to see these guys going heads up (although Arnie will unfortunately be sidelined with an injury).

Masters Par 3 Contest – Palmer, Nicklaus, Player

Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicholas, Gary Player, tee off at the PAR 3 contest at the Masters

The Course

Augusta National Golf Club measures in at 7,435 yards and plays as a par 72. Not much needs to be said here as Augusta National is easily one of the most famous and desired course on TOUR. The course layout was designed in 1930 by Bobby Jones with some help from Alistair Mackenzie.

Not only is Augusta National one of the most breathtaking golf courses in the world, it has also provided the stage for some of the best Sunday drama in the history of the PGA TOUR. For more on this be sure to check out our 10 Best Masters Moments here.

Augusta has expanded over the years with the total yardage increasing four times from 1999-2006, thus presenting an even greater challenge to today’s elite field. The course is lined with its signature magnolia trees and azaleas, and the gallery in attendance should be plentiful as usual, even despite Tiger’s absence. 

13th Hole at Augusta National. Photo by Nate Weigle

Weather Forecast for Augusta, GA (from weather.com)

• Round 1: Thursday (April 10) 75 degrees, 0% chance of rain, sunny.
• Round 2: Friday (April 11) 78 degrees, 0% chance of rain, partly cloudy.
• Round 3: Saturday (April 12) 81 degrees, 10% chance of rain, mostly sunny.
• Round 4: Sunday (April 13) 83 degrees, 0% chance of rain, partly cloudy.

2013 Results

Adam Scott gave Australia its first green jacket after out-dueling Angel Cabrera in a playoff with a remarkable 12-foot birdie on the second playoff hole. Scott finished his 3-under 69 with three birdies in his final six holes, which included draining an 18-footer at No. 18. But the 2009 Masters champ answered right back with an approach that landed 3 feet from the hole, allowing him to easily sink the tying birdie. After both parring the first playoff hole (18^th), the pair moved over to No. 10 as the rain came pouring down. Cabrera came within a breath of burying a 15-foot birdie which got hung up on the lip and came out. Scott followed up with the winning putt. The win was sweet relief for Scott who had blown up the year before at the Open Champion, giving the tournament away to Ernie Els (who we picked to win).

Watch the full recap of the 2013 playoff here:

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Media

• Television Broadcasts
  • Thursday-Friday, 3:00 – 7:30 p.m. ET (ESPN). Highlights show 11:30-11:45 pm (CBS).
  • Saturday 3:00 – 7:00 p.m. (CBS) & Sunday, 2:00 – 7:00 p.m. (CBS)
• Radio Broadcasts
  • Thursday- Sunday, 2:00 p.m. ET (PGA TOUR Radio on SiriusXM and PGATOUR.com).
• Mobile Broadcasts
  • Simultaneous coverage on the Masters official iPhone and iPad apps.

Fantasy Notes

It was another good week for our fantasy gurus as we totaled just under $1 million in total earnings, even though to our dismay Matt Kuchar choked in the end. If you remember back a few weeks ago we warned that after the Florida swing is traditionally when Matt Kuchar starts to heat up, and he did just that with a T4 at Valero Texas Open and solo 2^nd a week later at the Shell Houston Open.

With that said, we’ve decided to add a bonus feature for this week’s special event:

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Exclusive Bonus Tips, Top 5 Picks, and Top 2 Sleeper Picks are Available to Premium Members Only

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Hot Players: There is no doubt that the hottest players on TOUR are Matt Kuchar, Patrick Reed and Jimmy Walker.  Kuchar has been lights out since leaving Florida and has a game that’s perfectly suited for Augusta National.Patrick Reed is riding a ‘nothing to lose’ mentality into Augusta as he’s already won three times in the last sever months, including a WGC title against a star-studded field. Walker has cooled off a bit and so has DJ, but we think this stage will help them reemerge. You also can’t bet against Adam Scott this week…for a number of reasons. The returning champion is still one of the hottest players on TOUR and is always in contention at big event s, including this one. We think he’ll be a true contender this week.

Solid Picks: Bubba Watson, Rory McIlroy, Phil Mickelson and Jason Day are all solid picks this week. McIlroy is riding some momentum into Augusta this week with a few Top 10s under his belt (including a T7 last week). Rory still has a lot to prove to the doubters who destroyed him after signing the deal with Nike (he hasn’t won since). Bubba Watson always plays well in these events and is a past champion here. We love his chances to creep up leaderboard and give people a run for their money. Mickelson is always a contender but hasn’t played well this year and has struggled with some injuries as of late. We think his attention will be more on the U.S. Open, a major he has yet to win. Jason Day is prone to injuries but his track record proves he’s a contender here (T2, WD, and 3^rd) in his only 3 Masters.    

Players to Avoid: There’s a lot of hype swarming around Sergio Garcia and Jordan Spieth and we think you need to ignore it. Although both have the game to win an event of this caliber each has shown an inability to close the deal. Sergio has been known to get off to a hot start and then fall apart in later rounds and Spieth has had plenty of trouble with the putter as of late. We also love the fact that Brandt Snedeker wants to win the Masters more than anything in the world, recently stating that he would trade all of his wins for one Green Jacket, but the 2012 FedExCup champ hasn’t done much this year and we certainly won’t use one of our picks on him.  Lastly, as much as we love Dustin Johnson, he recently reported an issue with inflamation in his facet joints, which led him to shoot an 80 in the opening round of the SHO last week before withdrawing from the event. This is enough for us to not pick him this week.

Top 5 Picks/Odds to Win the 2014 Masters

• Adam Scott (Golficity Odds 8/1):  How can you not put last year’s champ in the top spot? As the past champion and one of the hottest players on TOUR (not to mention perhaps soon to be #1 ranked in the World, especially with Tiger sidelined), this will be his ultimate stage this year. Scott notched four more wins and another five top fives since last year’s victory at Augusta. His most recent success was a solo 3rd at Bay Hill (his last event leading up to this week’s Masters). If we had to pick just one, we’d go with Scott for the back-to-back green jackets.
• Matt Kuchar (Golficity Odds 12/1): Everyone has been doubting his ability to close out events since the Texas swing held him back from winning a trophy. Kuch had leads in both Lone Star events but ended up with a T4 (VTO) and P2 (Houston). We still like Kuch’s chances this week because his game is on point right now and truthfully he’s due for a big win. Kuchar also has top 10s in last two trips to Augusta. He’s reaching for that Green Jacket and he may just be wearing it come Sunday.
• Jason Day (Golficity Odds 18/1): Day seems to be a clear favorite in this year’s Masters and even Vegas has him 4th on the list of players to win based on odds. Jason has told the press that his thumb is feeling good and he’s ready to play. Keep in mind that he has not played in an event since winning the Match Play in February, but you have to love his recent success at Augusta: T2 (2011) and solo third last year.
• Bubba Watson (Golficity Odds 25/1): We know what you’re thinking: “two recent returning champions on this weeks list?” Yes. Bubba knows how to crank the dial up for big events and has proven that in the past. The 2012 champion will make his first start since withdrawing from Bay Hill  due to “allergies.” He has a win and two T2s in his previous three stroke-play events and he certainly could be a contender this week if his head and his game are in the right place.
• Rory McIlory (Golficity Odds 28/1): We’ve seen Rory win big majors and lately he’s had the hot hand. Although he hasn’t won in a while, this is exactly the stage he needs to shut up the doubters. Rory has quietly amassed couple of top 10s this year including aT7 at SHO last week. We like him as a low pick to win but grab a couple of the guys above first.

 Sleeper Picks/Odds to Win the 2014 Masters

• Phil Mickelson (Golficity Odds 40/1): One minute you think he’s injured, the next minute he’s in contention, either way we have to assume Phil is at 100% after his T12 last week at SHO. The lefty is a three-time Master’s Champion and we think he makes a solid sleeper pick this week. Keep in mind that he’s certainly no sure thing, especially in this field, but you can’t rule out his chances of making some noise come Sunday with the other golf Superstar not in attendance this week.
• Jimmy Walker (Golficity Odds 50/1):  We wanted to pick Patrick Reed here, but chose the FedExCup points leader purely because of his recent play. Although this is his Masters debut, Walker has top 25s in eight of nine starts in 2014 and ranks second in strokes gained-putting. This stat is crucial for success on this course, and don’t forget…he’s won three times on TOUR this season.

 Bonus Pick

• Angel Cabrera (Golficity Odds 75/1):  Just for fun we wanted to through this bonus pick at you. The 44 year old almost won this event last year and his record at Augusta is impressive. Overall he is 28 under par overall in his last five starts at the Masters which includes a Win, 2nd and 7th. He’s as comfortable here at Augusta as anyone else in the field.

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Last Week’s Results:  Top 5 Picks/Odds to Win the 2014 Shell Houston Open

• Dustin Johnson (Golficity Odds 12/1): WD ($0)
• Henrik Stenson (Golficity Odds 16/1): T54 ($14,656)
• Jordan Spieth (Golficity Odds 20/1): MC ($0)
• Matt Kuchar (Golficity Odds 22/1): Solo 2^nd ($691,200)
• Rory McIlroy(Golficity Odds 28/1): T7 ($186, 240)

Last Week’s Results: Sleeper Picks/Odds to Win the 2014 Shell Houston Open

• Bill Haas (Golficity Odds 45/1): T37 (28,160)
• Charlie Hoffman (Golficity Odds 66/1): T37 (28,160)

Fantasy Golf Predictions Stats: Season to Date

• Total Fantasy Dollars: $15,734,465 (Average tournament winnings of $1,123,890).
• Winners picked: 3 winners selected out of 14 tournaments (21.42% winners picked in 2014).
• Top 10s: 36 out of 98 players picked (36.73% of players picked finished in Top 10).
• Top 3s: 11 out of 98 players picked (11.22% players picked finished in the Top 3).
• Missed Cuts: Only 10 out of 98 players (90% of the picks made the cut in 2014).

What are your fantasy picks and predictions for this week’s big 2014 Masters Tournament at Augusta National? Let us know by leaving your comments below.

(Cover Photo Credit)