The Masters 2021: Tournament preview and picks

The 2021 Masters has arrived just four months on from the first-ever Autumn Masters last November. Augusta National will once again welcome the golfing world this week as one of if not the most prestigious event in golf resumes its traditional spot on the calendar signifying that Spring is officially upon us.

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In what is shaping up to be one of the most wide-open Masters in a very long time, it is Dustin Johnson who is aiming to be the first repeat winner of the green jacket since Tiger Woods did it in 2001-2002. The World number one per the Official World Golf Rankings won his first green jacket in dominant fashion last year and he will be joined this week by the rest of the top ten in the rankings and an overall star-studded field.

Augusta National Home of the Masters

Augusta National Golf Club has been home to one of the most prestigious sporting events in the World since 1934 and it truly is the perfect setting for an event that has a “tradition unlike any other”.

The PAR 72 7,475 yard masterpiece was designed by Bobby Jones and Alistair McKenzie in 1933 and is a true test of a golfer’s complete game with its tree-lined fairways, steep elevation changes, and lightning-fast Bentgrass greens that slope throughout.

The course is known for its natural beauty and traditional springtime azaleas as well as being home to one of the most iconic stretches in golf, Amen Corner, a three-hole stretch that features one of the most spectacular PAR 3’s in the world, the PAR 3 12th hole that sits right along the famous Rae’s creek.

Augusta National is expected to play much quicker this week than it did back in November as it returns to its traditional spot in the Spring.

Past winners of the Masters

2020: Dustin Johnson (-20)

2019: Tiger Woods (-13)

2018: Patrick Reed (-15)

2017: Sergio Garcia (-9) *After Playoff over Justin Rose

2016: Danny Willett (-5)

2015: Jordan Spieth (-18)

Can Dustin Johnson repeat his feat from last November?, will Bryson DeChambeau overpower Augusta National on his way to a win this time? or does Jordan Spieth complete his inspirational comeback with a culminating victory again at the Masters?. Plenty of storylines are waiting to be written in the history books this week, but who’s time is it in 2021?.

The Favorites at the Masters

The odds used in this article can be found online at popular betting sites, for more information on the best odds and sportsbook’s available locally to you check out The Action Network

Defending Champion Dustin Johnson +800 opens as a slight favorite over Bryson DeChambeau +900 this week in his quest to defend at Augusta National after a quick turn-around.

Bryson is followed by all of Jordan Spieth +1000, Jon Rahm +1100, and Justin Thomas +1100 who complete a tightly contested range at the top of the odds-boards this week. Rahm makes for an intriguing pick this week now that concerns over a potential withdrawal from the Masters are put aside due to the birth of his child on Sunday. Spieth will be a popular pick this week and all signs are certainly pointing towards him donning the green jacket once again after he broke the win barrier at the Valero Texas Open over the weekend.

Both Rory Mcllroy +1600 and Patrick Cantlay +2000 complete the top tier of favorites this week. It’s hard to back Mcllroy until he shows something, even at a deeper number. Cantlay is another interesting choice this week, he has been so good in 2021 so far only to come up just short of winning on a couple of occasions.

The Mid-Tier this week features a couple of past Masters winners in Patrick Reed +3300 and Sergio Garcia +4500. The 2018 Masters Champion Reed has struggled to find consistency with his game at times in 2021, but still rates out as one of the best putters on tour.

Xander Schauffele +2200, Tony Finau +2500, Brooks Koepka +2500, and Collin Morikawa +2800 also sit inside of the Mid-Tier this week. Koepka is expected to play this week and in doing so will be making his first start since his recent surgery.

Both Daniel Berger +3300 and Paul Casey +3300 are two names worth noting as well at some deeper numbers this week. They both had a nice showing at THE PLAYERS in their last stroke play event and both are having a very nice 2021 so far having each won once already.

Past winners of the Masters have generally come from the top of the market and have a good amount of experience at the Masters before their breakthrough win with only Fuzzy Zoeller having had won on his debut back in 1979.

Picks to win the 2021 Masters

Bryson DeChambeau +900

DeChambeau tackled Augusta National for the first time with his new-found power last fall and it did not go to plan as he struggled to make the cut before eventually finishing T-34. Bryson does not have the best history at the Masters in general, but the majority of that came before he added the monstrous distance to his repertoire.

Not many have been better in the run-up to this Masters and with Bryson showcasing an acute tactical awareness of when to harness his power in recent events he looks like a solid pick to win on his second attempt with the Kraken in his arsenal.

Paul Casey +3300

8th, 1st, 12th, 5th, 10th, 5th are the results the renewed Casey has put up in stroke events this year. The Englishman spoke of the difficulties he had throughout much of 2020 following his win earlier this year at the Omega Dubai Desert Classic, describing how he struggled without fans in attendance for the majority of last year.

Since the win Paul has hardly put a foot wrong and been playing some exceptional golf, he even had earmarked the Masters following that win a couple of months ago. Casey will feel inspired that he can go one step further than the PGA Championship last year and win his first Major this week. His track record at Augusta is not too shabby either with a 4th and a 6th place finish in two previous appearances at the Masters.

Sungjae Im +4000

Im was awfully impressive in his debut at the Masters several months ago when he finished T2. The Korean has been trending in the right direction in recent starts with an 8th place finish at the Honda Classic following up a 17th place finish at THE PLAYERS in the start prior.

Sungjae has struggled with ball striking for a good portion of 2021 so far, but there have been some signs in recent starts that it is starting to come back around.  I liked the excellent young player as a potential winner at Augusta in my pre-season major’s preview and I am going to stick with him at a good number this week.

Adam Scott +6600

It’s been a pretty interesting season so far for the Australian who secured a top 10 finish at the Farmers earlier this year when not driving the ball particularly well, Scott went on to sandwich that result with a bunch of mediocre finishes before securing a 13th at the Honda Classic in his last start.

It was the first time in two starts that he gained strokes both off the tee and with his approach play. The 2013 Masters winner gained an eye-popping seven strokes with his irons in his last start and the fact that he managed to gain in both statistical categories is a good indication that his game might finally be clicking into place in 2021. The former champion makes the card this week at a good number.

Will Zalatoris +8000 and Sebastian Munoz +15000 will be the two at longer odds that close out the Masters card for 2021. Long shots don’t win often at Augusta National so these two will be played in the top 10 and top 20 markets as well.

Zalatoris is making his debut at the Masters but he may be one to break the trend, he has had an incredible year in 2021 so far and is already displaying some of the best ball-striking on the PGA. Will was 21st in his debut at TPC Sawgrass and he has shown he is more than capable of showing up in the biggest events including at the U.S. Open last year where he finished 6th.

Sebastian is another player that had a pretty impressive debut at the Masters in November when he fell back to 19th after being well inside of the top ten for a good portion of the tournament. The Colombian had been struggling a bit in his recent starts, but something seemed to spark for him over the weekend in San Antonio where he finished T9 while gaining strokes across the board.

The Masters Card

Bryson DeChambeau +900

Paul Casey +3300

Sungjae Im +4000

Adam Scott +6600

Will Zalatoris +8000 (with Top 10, Top 20)

Sebastian Munoz +15000 (with Top 10, Top 20)