Donald risks jinx by lifting par-3 title
No winner of the eve-of-tournament competition has gone on to win the first major of the season four days later and Donald’s five-under-par 22 on the nine-hole course was too good for the rest.
That was only two outside the record for the fun event, set by Art Wall in 1965 and matched by Gay Brewer eight years later.
Twice par-3 winner Padraig Harrington was not going to make it a hat-trick. He had a two-under 25, the same as Phil Mickelson. Graeme McDowell also didn’t risk being jinxed as he stayed away from the contest to watch Manchester United beat Chelsea in the Champions League instead.
Donald won by one shot from 2009 Masters champion Angel Cabrera and 1976 winner Raymond Floyd.
Another man looking to buck history when the tournament begins today is Ernie Els.
This is the South African’s 18th attempt to win at Augusta and nobody has ever done it after waiting so long. Mark O’Meara holds the record at 15.
As the world number 13, though, it is surely too soon to dismiss his chances — especially when you recall that between 2000, the year he was runner-up to Vijay Singh, and 2004, when he lost by one to Phil Mickelson’s closing birdie, Els was never outside the top six.
The 41-year-old then had three missed cuts in a row from 2007 and last April was 18th after winning on two of his three previous starts in America.
This season he tees off, though, without a top-10 finish all year and admitting “it hasn’t really come together as well as I would have liked”.
In his website diary Els says: “I’ve played some good stuff in patches, but I haven’t had the consistency that you need in order to get right in the mix. I’ll try to carry a relaxed mindset all the way through into Thursday’s first round and just try to enjoy the experience rather than obsessing about winning.
“I’ve tried everything over the years and I think now this is the best approach for me.
“There is magic about this place that never seems to fade. To win here I feel like it would make my career complete.’’
Meanwhile a poll of golf journalists in Augusta has agreed with the view of the bookmakers — Mickelson is the favourite for The Masters.
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