Masters Tournament: Majestic Mickelson Savours Augusta Glory


Augusta, Georgia (April 11): Cheered on by the Augusta National patrons Phil Mickelson scored an emotion-charged victory in the 74th edition of the Masters Tournament. The American left-hander fired a closing five-under-par 67 to leave his rivals trailing in his wake and capture a third Green Jacket, to go with his previous wins here in 2004 and 2006. His four-round total of 16-under 272 was three shots ahead of England's Lee Westwood, the overnight leader. American Anthony Kim claimed third place on 12-under after a blistering 65 while Tiger Woods and Korean Choi Kyung-ju ended in a share of fourth spot on 11-under. Completing a memorable week for Asia, Yang Yong-eun tied for eighth on 281. It's the first time two Asians have finished in the top-10 at Augusta.

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Augusta Comes Alive With Noise In Saturday’s Third Round


Augusta, Georgia (April 10): The roars were restored in Masters Round Three. You could hear the thunderous ovations a mile or more away. That meant a couple of things. One, something special was going on. Two, it created a guessing game for the thousands on the Augusta National grounds. Hear unusual noise? Make an educated guess on the result. Four bursts of prolonged shouting reverberated through the pines in about half an hour. Bang, bang, bang, bang. Fireworks on the back nine.

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Englishmen Making A Charge At Augusta Major Glory


Augusta, Georgia (April 9): With two Englishmen tied for the Masters lead, we are faced with one big question: Where is Paul Revere when we need him? The English are coming, the English are coming, and there is no one to stop them. Oh, we almost forgot – there’s Tiger Woods, an English eradicator if there ever was one. No Englishman has won a Major championship since Nick Faldo’s Masters victory in 1996. Not so coincidentally, that was the same year Woods turned pro.

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Masters Tournament: Even At 60, Watson Can’t Be Counted Out


Augusta, Georgia (April 8): Proposal for a new Shell’s Wonderful World of Golf match: Tom Watson versus Father Time. Then again, that one might turn out to be pretty one-sided. The man who nearly pulled off one of sports’ most improbable feats at Turnberry during last summer’s British Open was at it again on Thursday at the Masters, winding back the clock with an opening five-under 67. One might dismiss it as one of those sentimental, throwback Masters stories that tend to bloom like the azaleas on Thursday of Masters week, a nice little tale that runs for 24 hours and fades away with so many ghosts of this storied place. But on the heels of what Watson did last summer in Scotland, losing in a play-off, at the very least his Thursday effort raised an eyebrow or two.

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Ernie? No. Fred? Forget it. Tiger? Nope. Look To Korean KJ


Augusta, Georgia (April 7): Sure, everybody has jumped onto the Ernie Els bandwagon, calling him the favourite to win this week at Augusta National after back-to-back victories at the WGC-CA Championship and the Arnold Palmer Invitational. Some are even touting Fred Couples, who has been beating up rivals on the Champions Tour. Of course, you can’t discount Tiger Woods at any Masters, regardless of his circumstances. But my money is on KJ Choi, who has been given the dubious privilege of playing with Woods and Matt Kuchar in Thursday's opening round. The resurgent Korean is coming off a pair of runner-up finishes at the Maybank Malaysian Open on the European/Asian Tour and the Transitions Championship on the PGA Tour, followed by a tie for 17th at Bay Hill. His worst finish in eight starts this season is a tie for 39th at the Sony Open in Hawaii.

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Thongchai Gunning For A Slice Of Thai Golfing History


Augusta, Georgia (April 6): Thai Thongchai Jaidee plans to complete another career milestone when he tees up at the Masters Tournament this week. The reigning Asian Tour number one is determined to make the cut at Augusta National in what will be his second Masters appearance. He already has the distinction of having played all four rounds in each of the other three Majors - the US Open, Open Championship and PGA Championship. If he succeeds, he will become the first Thai to achieve that feat. Sukree Onsham and Prayad Marksaeng, the only other Thais to have competed at Augusta, both played twice in The Masters and missed the cut on each occasion.

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