The Masters Betting Preview 2021

Dustin Johnson will be aiming to be the first man to defend the Masters since Tiger Woods (2002) when the year’s first Major gets underway on Thursday.

DJ – who “shocked” the world with his quite thoughtful Champions Dinner meal – has only played six times since he won the quite untraditional Masters in November last year. In that time, he has maintained his place as the world’s leading player largely due to his win in Saudi Arabia.

That victory was back in early February and since then the likes of Justin Thomas, Bryson DeChambeau, Collin Morikawa, Daniel Berger, Patrick Reed and Brooks Koepka have all won.

And speaking of Koepka, the newly engaged player will head to Augusta this week despite undergoing knee surgery in the middle of March.

What we know about trying to figure out a potential Green Jacket wearer come Sunday remains the same. You are looking for a strong iron player and someone who scrambles well around the greens. Of course, a red-hot putter is essential and with these three statistics in mind, let’s point out three players to challenge this week.

Jon Rahm – The Shot Maker at 12-1

The world No 3 and proud new father will indeed head to the Masters. Without a Major to his name, the Spaniard has seven top 10s to his credit this season as he continues to develop into one of the best in the game. Rahm is currently second in the tour’s tee to green statistic – behind DeChambeau but ahead of Morikawa and Thomas – and is well- set for a run at his first Major.

Patrick Cantlay – The Scrambler at 20-1

The world No 10 continues to fly under the radar but one wonders for how long? Cantlay is currently second in scrambling on the tour and has built up a solid record at Augusta National. He has a top 20 and a top 10 in his last two outings and added two top fives (American Express and AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am) to his win at Sherwood at the backend of 2020.

Abraham Ancer or Joaquin Niemann – The Outsiders at 66-1 or 50-1

To Presidents Cup fans neither name is a bolt from the blue. Both players are quietly making a good living in the US. This week, they have a chance to make their wildest dreams a reality. Both are in good nick and are inside the top 35 in the world which can be used as a good indicator of their status in the game heading into the biggest week in golf.

Ancer, who hails from Mexico, had his name on the first page of the leaderboard from Thursday to Saturday before a poor final round saw him drift to T13.

Niemann, who represents Chile, is currently fourth in the tour’s scoring average for the season. He already has back to back runner-up finishes in 2021 and hasn’t missed the cut in ages.

It’s going to be a thrilling week where DJ attempts to defend, Rory McIlroy tries to pull off the Grandslam yet again and Jordan Spieth seeks Major redemption. There’s a storyline for just about every player in the invite’s only field. A little past midnight on Sunday, only one player will have written the perfect one though.

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