Masters 2012: Could Bubba Watson Pull Off A Win At Augusta?
Heading into the final day of the 2012 Masters, most of the spotlight has fallen on none other than Phil Mickelson, and rightfully so.
Lefty took advantage of moving day in a big way, charging into second for the tournament, just one stroke back of the lead. He birdied four holes on the back nine, as well as an eagle on 13. He has to be considered the favorite to grab a fourth green jacket on Sunday after that run on Saturday.
But what about some of the other guys in contention for the coveted coat? More specifically, what about Bubba Watson?
Watson has quietly had a solid weekend, coming in under par for the first three rounds. He got off to a bit of a rough start on Saturday, with a pair of bogies on his first five holes, but he rebounded nicely.
Bubba finished with a 70 for the day, and is at 6-under heading into the final day. He’s three strokes back of the leader, but if his first three rounds are any indication, he could have an upper hand heading into the grand finale.
He’s played the most difficult holes of the course well, including a birdie on 18 to finish his day on Saturday. On the five most difficult holes on the course, he’s only three over.
The fact that he’s played so well on the tough holes should give him some momentum heading into Sunday. But even if he doesn’t pull off the win, which would be considered an upset at this point, there would still plenty of opportunity for Watson to call this weekend a success.
Though he’s been around a bit, Watson hasn’t really garnered much attention as a serious contender on a regular basis on the PGA Tour. He’s managed to discover some consistency this year, which has led to three top 10 finishes so far. He could very well be on his way to a fourth on Sunday.
When Watson completes his round on Sunday, he’ll have completed just the fourth Masters of his career. This is already, by far the best, with he previous best coming in a tie for 20th back in 2008. He has a chance to not only break out with a strong performance on Sunday, but he could very well pounce and grab a surprise victory.
Watson has been quietly lurking all weekend. While it will be tough to take down Phil with the incredible momentum he’s riding heading into the final day, don’t count out the other lefty. It’s going to be a fun one to watch, as Masters Sunday usually is.
