U.S. Masters 2013: Is It Tiger’s Time, or Will Rory Roar?

About 50 years ago, Jack Nicklaus won the first of his six green jackets at the Masters. This week, Tiger Woods goes for his fifth title at Augusta National. He’s the consensus pick to achieve that milestone at the 77th edition of the event.

There’s one small problem: Tiger hasn’t won a major since the 2008 U.S. Open, his 14th. If he wants to get to 15, he’ll never have a better chance than this week. As Nicklaus himself said: “If he doesn’t figure it out here, after the spring he’s had, I think it will be a lot tougher for him. … Obviously the older he gets and if he doesn’t win, it makes my record move out further.”

So the pressure is squarely on the top golfer in the world to seize the opportunity being presented to him at Augusta: if he fails for some reason, there are others ready to step up. First off, there’s former No. 1 Rory McIlroy (pictured). He is another who needs to regain some composure, show he can handle his new clubs and prove he can handle being in one of the most prestigious tournaments ever created. That also means he must forget his past Masters history: Rory’s best finish at Augusta was a tie for 15th in 2011.

Then there’s ol’ Lefty, Phil Mickelson, whose game has fallen off a bit lately. Regardless of how he’s played elsewhere, though, Augusta is always a place where Mickelson likes coming back to, as he’s shown with three green jackets (victories in 2004, 2006 and 2010).

Bubba Watson is the defending champion, but he’s not favored to repeat. After all, only three men have won consecutive Masters titles: Tiger in 2001 and 2002, Nick Faldo in 1989 and 1990, and Nicklaus in 1965 and 1966. Watson hasn’t won an event this year, nor has 2011 Masters champion Charl Schwartzel.

Matt Kuchar might be one who breaks through with an inaugural major. With five victories under his belt in his 12-year PGA career, one top five and two top 10 finishes this season and a tie for third at the 2012 Masters, Kuchar may be on the verge of making a major splash. Keegan Bradley’s driver could take him a long way here. The 2011 PGA Tournament winner (his only major among his three PGA Tour victories) has a game built for Augusta. Brandt Snedeker is always a threat to break through, and the same can be said for Justin Rose and Lee Westwood.

Finally, how about a 14-year-old? Guan Tianlang is the youngest player at a major golf event in 148 years, when “Young Tom” Morris entered (but later withdrew from) the 1865 British Open. Guan qualified by winning the Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship in Thailand last fall, but is obviously a longshot at best here.