Donald tips Euro stars to make their mark
European players enjoyed enormous success at Augusta at the end of the 1980s and into the 1990s, recording eight wins between 1988 and 1999 and seven out of nine between Sandy Lyle’s triumph in 1988 and Nick Faldo’s third title in 1996. However, the last European player to don the famous Green Jacket is Jose Maria Olazabal in 1999, despite the likes of Donald, Lee Westwood, Martin Kaymer and Rory McIlroy all being world number one in the last three years.
“Does it surprise me? Nothing surprises me in golf anymore,” Donald said, asked about the barren run.
“I think since I’ve been a professional, I feel like the fields have gotten a lot stronger, a lot deeper. You’re seeing anyone on a given week has a chance to win.
“This game is a very mental game and it’s almost who are the least fragile players that week that have a chance. Everyone has the talent and the ability to win and there’s a bunch of great and good European players now, Justin (Rose) and Poults (Ian Poulter) and Rory (McIlroy) and Graeme (Mc-Dowell), and the list goes. But we have as good a chance this year as any.”
Donald finished third on his debut in 2005 and fourth in 2011, and although he missed the cut in his last event in Malaysia, the 35-year-old is confident.
“(As) someone who had such a great 2011 (winning the money list on both sides of the Atlantic), pretty good 2012, I know the ability is there.”
