re: The 2018 Masters Tournament - Patrick Reed Wins First Major

I HIGHLY doubt he qualified for it and decided to skip. But shite, the guy knows how to put on a show in majors and is a pretty interesting cat. Plus he's 73 holes in this tournament from a 2nd place finish.

My “surprise” pick is Noren that cat has been flat sticking a ball

Larry Mize won’t break 83 either day

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2011 : Schwartzel
2012 : Watson
2013 : Scott
2014 : Watson
2015 : Spieth
2016 : Willett
2017 : Sergio
2018 : W

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I mean.. it's easily a top 10 most difficult tournament to win. The top 60 or so players in the world are here. But it's certainly behind the other majors and the Players.

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Think this is fair. The PGA generally has the top 100 players in the world, so that will always make it more difficult. US Open and Open Championship reward players outside the top 50 in the world, who are playing well leading into the tournament which make those events very tough. The Players is pretty much the first tournament of the playoffs, but also includes the top 50 players who don't hold a PGA Tour card.

Masters is still a difficult tournament to win, but will almost always be well behind the others in strength of field.

OWGR strength of field will almost always go PGA, Open, Players, US (because of qualifiers who get in with very little OWGR points lower that strength of field), then the Masters.

I personally think the order is:
1. Players
2. US Open
3. Open
4. PGA
5. Masters

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And of course the goat is back in form.

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IDK, Jack is up there in age.

This is how you get to play in the Masters.
Masters Invitations Go To ...
1. Masters Tournament champions
If you win The Masters, you get a lifetime exemption to continue playing in the tournament for as long as you like.
However, today past champions are, ahem, "encouraged" to stop playing once they reach a point their score might be called embarrassing.

2. Past five U.S. Open champions
To put it another way, a golfer who wins the U.S. Open receives a 5-year exemption into The Masters.
3. Past five British Open champions
4. Past five PGA Championship winners
In the case of each major, after five years, the exemption becomes honorary and non-competing. That means winners of the other majors can still show up at Augusta National during The Masters, practice on the course, sign up for the Par-3 Tournament if they wish, but lose the exemption into The Masters Tournament itself.

5. Past three winners of The Players Championship
A 3-year Masters exemption for each Players Championship winner, in other words.
6. Current U.S. Amateur champion and runner-up
The U.S. Amateur is a match play tournament, so getting into the championship match - even if you lose it - gets you into the The Masters. However, the golfers who qualify via this category must still be amateurs at the time of The Masters; turning pro forfeits the Masters invitation.
7. Current British Amateur champion
Like the U.S. Amateur qualifiers, the British Amateur champ must still be an amateur at the time of The Masters. Unlike the U.S. Amateur exemption, only the British Am champ (not the runner-up) receives a Masters invitation.
8. Current Asia-Pacific Amateur champion
9. Current Latin America Amateur champion
10. Current U.S. Mid-Amateur champion
The U.S. Mid-Amateur Championship is open to amateur golfers ages 25 and older. The effect of this qualifying criteria is to get a career amateur into The Masters field each year.
11. The first 12 players, including ties, in the previous year's Masters Tournament
If you can't win The Masters, you can still guarantee you get to come back next year by finishing inside the Top 12.
12. The first four players, including ties, in the previous year's U.S. Open Championship
13. The first four players, including ties, in the previous year's British Open Championship
14. The first four players, including ties, in the previous year's PGA Championship
15. Winners of PGA Tour events that award a full-point allocation for the season-ending Tour Championship, from previous Masters to current Masters
The "full-point allocation" is key, and it's FedEx Cup points that are being talked about here.
Opposite-field tournaments on the PGA Tour (those played the same week as another, bigger tournament) do not award full FedEx Cup points. So winning one of those lower-point events does not carry with it automatic entry into The Masters.
16. Those qualifying for the previous year's season-ending Tour Championship
The Tour Championship's field is made up of the top 30 golfers in the FedEx Cup point standings.
17. The 50 leaders on the Final Official World Golf Ranking for the previous calendar year
18. The 50 leaders on the Official World Golf Ranking published during the week prior to the current Masters Tournament
Also note that Augusta National's Masters Committee reserves the right to invite any international golfer its sees fit who is not otherwise qualified.
These Masters qualifications usually result in a tournament field of from 90 to 100 players.

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When you need to pick a winner, don't go against exact science

2011 : Schwartzel
2012 : Watson
2013 : Scott
2014 : Watson
2015 : Spieth
2016 : Willett
2017 : Sergio
2018 : W

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What
The
shite

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What
The
shite

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You do realize Sergio is a first name, right?

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The Players is the most difficult golf tournament to win. Not the most prestigious, but the most difficult.

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The Players has the toughest field. That is not the same thing as being the most difficult to win. There isn't anywhere near as much pressure in the final round of The Players as there is in the final round of a major. The most difficult golf tournament to win is either The Open or the U.S. Open. The Open usually has the most potential for bad weather as a factor and the U.S. Open usually has the most brutal set up as far as rough goes and with the USGA's strange fetish with having every course they play the U.S. Open at other than Pebble Beach be manipulated into having a par of 70 thereby changing one or two easy par fives into ridiculous par fours.

I rule out the Masters only because it is held on the same course every year. If you learn to hit the right shots on the right holes you have a chance to win it every year. For the other majors the right shots change from year to year depending on the course they are being played on. The PGA is still the little brother to the other three majors and is generally set up easier than the U.S. Open.

About to head out for Augusta with my cousin. First time going. Just for Tuesday but I get to see a Phil Tiger Freddie dream grouping so I'll be in golf heaven.