REASONS TO BE CHEERFUL

Nick Bonfield analyses the UK challenge ahead of the 2020 Masters and explains why a home winner is a distinct possibility

When The Masters field is finalised a week before the event, golf fans across these isles assess the chances of another home victory at a course that’s been a relatively fertile hunting ground for our players over the last few decades. Given the strength of UK golf at the moment – there are 11 players in the world’s top 50 – and the fact The Masters boasts the smallest field of any of golf’s big four events, it seems reasonable to suggest the year’s first Major offers the best opportunity for a UK victory. But who is most likely to follow Messrs Lyle, Faldo, Woosnam and Willett and land a Greet Jacket?

Naturally, Rory McIlroy is the first player who comes to mind. His Masters record is superb – he’s registered five top-ten finishes in the last six years – and his game is ideally suited to Augusta National. His length gives him short clubs into the longest par 4s and means all the par 5s are comfortably in reach, while his high ball flight is the perfect antidote to Augusta’s slick and undulating putting surfaces.