John Swantek visits with 3-time Masters champion and CBS Sports lead golf analyst Nick Faldo, along with Ron Green Jr from the Global Golf Post and PGATOUR.COM fantasy insider Rob Bolton.
Talk of the TOUR Golf Podcast
Sir Nick Faldo, Ron Green Jr, and Rob Bolton preview the Masters
here today. Welcome to the talk of the tour podcast for April 5th. I'm John Swansick. It is Masters Week, three-time Masters champion Sir Nick Valdo will join us a little bit later on. Ron Green Jr. from the Global Golf Post is in Augusta. He's coming up shortly. Ron Bolton from PGA tour.com. The fantasy inside with his Intel and rankings for the 80th Masters for all of you gamers out there. There will be more next week and most weeks here. And you can listen to and download the show by visiting PGA tour.com slash podcasts. And you can also access talk of the tour all of our other content as well via iTunes, tune in and Stitcher. Just go to PGA tour dot com slash podcasts and subscribe today. And my first guest is probably stinging a little bit from his Carolina Tar Heels taking it on the chin Monday night against Hill and over in the national championship game. But Ron Green Jr. of the Global Golf Post will quickly turn the page because it's Masters Week. Ron, thanks for some time. How you doing? And I won't say how did you enjoy the game Monday night, but it was kind of epic, wasn't it? That was a heck of a game. Great finish. I mean, as a Tar Heel, you'd like to have maybe seen that shot bounce off there to build another one with, but they didn't miss many shots over the weekend. And they played so well. And it was good to see that Carolina come back was terrific. And yeah, what I would like to different outcomes. Sure. But if you got to lose losing to that team, losing that way in the way the game came down, two guys hit great shots at the very end. And one of those, I guess time just ran out at the end. But it was nice to have the Masters to sort of turn the attention to now. How many years have you been have you been going there as a as a patron slash reporter that you saw missed? My first one was 1979. So we could do the math. I didn't go in 82 and 83. I was actually working in Chapel Hill back in those days. And they had national championship runs or basketball runs there that precluded it. But other than that, I've been every year but two since 1979. So a lot of years. Wow. Seventy nine. I'm trying to backtrack Fuzzy Zeller, right? His first appearance? Fuzzy Zeller. Yeah. First time around my first time. Oh, man. Well, you guys will always have that connection. Did you between you and your dad, I have to believe, gosh, close to 50, maybe more than 50 Masters covered through the years. My dad covered 60 in a row and then last year was he did not come last year's not here this year. He decided after 60 that was enough. Wow. And so I think a total story that last years, like I said, the first one in 61 years, he hadn't been doing on Thursday. My niece went over to his house and took a minute cheese in the double bag. All that stuff. Excel and they said they're going to watch the Masters. Oh, that's about as good as you can do if you're not going to be there. So now you've got something to shoot for. You need to get the 61. That would be a nice lofty goal. Yeah. I'd like to think I could get close at least. You know, this is like trying to choose your favorite child, I guess, but is there is there one in all your years there that that stands out from the rest? Well, probably like a lot of people who are here in 1986. I think that being here the day Jack shot 65 and one and 86 away did. I mean, there's a reason golf channel did a documentary on the 30th anniversary and other people right now. I mean, that was just it was one of those days that I mean, I can still remember sort of the feeling of like just electricity running through the place and when it sort of begin to happen and then over the last hour, how it just sort of this piece went fit here and that was it still glows after all these years, but. I know other ones. I mean, being here the day when Tiger had the giant lead in 97 and you sort of knew what was happening and you know, that one reached beyond golf a little bit and really changed the game and you know, affected society. I think that was a great one of it. Otherwise, I'm finally seeing Phil when things like that. I mean, sitting here they're running different things on the television screen. You see Adam Scott raising his arms in the rain and all that. It's just it's it once in a while it sort of the tournament may deliver something close to a conquer but rarely. I mean, it is it has a great way about it. I mean, the characters, the setting and everything. It just it's just it's perfect for what we get here and it rarely disappoints your colleague Steve Eubanks from the global golf post compiled a terrific timeline with the help of all the people that were on the CBS golf production of the 86 Masters. Steve Melnick, Tom Wyskoff, Gary McCord, Ben Wright, Lance Barrow, who was the assistant director at the time to Frank Surekinian, Jim Nance obviously and they wove some wonderful stories. But what many of them recollected Ron was the noise that they heard on the golf course that day. They described it as as unlike anything they had ever heard before or since. Is that your recollection of it as well from being on the ground that year? Yeah, I remember there's sort of a sort of there's a no running rule in Augusta. The patrons are not supposed to jog down to get ahead of groups to watch on stuff. But that day there were grown men running down the hill. They had a corner to follow Jack and running around everywhere. I mean, I don't want to say the rules were relaxed, but it just I think the emotion of the moment took it over. And yeah, if you're fortunate enough to come here a few times, if you're out there, you sort of recognize what the sounds are from this place or that place and especially on the weekends and that that was different. I mean, it was there was such a, I mean, just people so wanted it to happen the way it all from they did that I think it did there was a different sort of thunderclap to it. I remember for Steve's story, which was great on the read. I talked to Lance for it and Jim Lance and I talked for an hour about it. And it's just the kind of thing you can go on and on about. And I tell people when when it comes on a golf channel, the one hour highlight show from 86, it's like like when I'm flipping stations and come across the godfather, I always have to stop and watch the least part of it. And if I see that 86 master thing like, okay, wait a minute, I got 45 more minutes to go. All right, clear schedule because I just it just pulls me in from your discussion with Jim Nance. What is his vision for the number of masters he's like to do? I know I've heard the number 50 tossed around, which would be the 100th masters if Jim can hang in that long. Is that the sense you got from speaking with him? Yeah, we talked about that. He said, you know, he had stayed down in the tower at 16 to watch the end of the tournament. And so when it was over, he started walking back up the hill. It's just I think a lot of people could practically float back up that hill after the wave of things turned out. Said he came across Ken Venturi in a cart who was leaving the tower and he said, I didn't know Kenny that well, but we were talking and Venturi looked at me and said, you know, you may cover 50 masters in your career, but you'll never have one better than this one. He said that was the day. It's sort of planted to seed. Hey, 50 masters would be a pretty cool thing. So I think he's what, 30 now. So he's moving right along there, but that's where his idea of 50 masters came from. Another master story beckons. That's the title of the column, the take written by our guest Ron Green Jr. More than any other tournament, as you wrote, the masters is about anticipation and that is so important to recognize, I guess, because this is the one that we wait for as soon as they sort of close the books on the PGA Championship the previous year, isn't it? Yeah, I think it's got the 8 month build up. I think we sort of golf season settles down. I'll like this year. Once the rider cup is passed, we'll sort of it'll sort of come off the full boil there and then you start sort of always thinking about it. And then is each calendar here starts on the tour season. It's like there's a little rhythm to it, you know, with the Hawaii thing and then they get the California and especially once they get to Florida, it's like you can almost see the azaleas from there and just because it's first because it's in the same place because of where it is and you have all that time, it just it has a different build up than any other tournament in golf. And it's just it's the right thing at the right time at the right place. It's just you think they couldn't improve on it, but they keep finding ways to do little things around here because they obviously think it could be better. Although it's pretty darn good the way it is the champions dinner is tonight as we record this on Tuesday. Jordan Spieth will be the host and the defending champion having gone second. First, the last two years in his first two appearances at the Masters, what do you suppose Spieth's game plan will be this week and how do you fancy his chances, Ron? Well, I think obviously as a good just look at his record here. I mean, he is a guy who figured it out in a hurry here. I think he will like a lot of guys if the win the forecast for win, especially Thursday Friday, 15 to 20, maybe 25 mile an hour gust. I think that will affect the way guys have to play. I don't may take some aggressiveness away. I don't, if that forecast holds, I don't perceive anybody shooting 18 under par this year. I think Jordan is such a cerebral player. I mean, we see and hear the emotion, but I think he plays with his mind so well. And I just think he will do everything to put himself in the right position. Obviously, sometimes it comes down that whether you make cuts or not, I think he is probably not been quite as sharp as he wants to be. But I think we've heard Phil Nicholson talking about this through the years. I think when you get here, it changes things. I think the vibe change for some guys. And I think for him, while he's been playing all these other tournaments, his eyes have sort of always, one eye has always sort of been on a gust. So I'd like his chances. I mean, I think there's probably nine, ten guys that everybody would put on the same list. And so you already give me nine guys and I'll give you the rest of the field and I would like my chance. It's played in layers as you wrote and I thought that was an apt way to describe it because sometimes there are stories that unfold that we're not expecting. Sometimes there's stories that just tell themselves. You wrote a nice piece about Mark Leishman and what he was dealing with 52 weeks ago and his wife Audrey was near death. There's no other way to describe it. And the Leishman said two little kids, a three year old and one and a half year old. And he was anticipating being a widower and what his life would look like going forward and Ron, he was prepared to step away from the game a year ago. That was the case. Yeah, I mean, we talked a couple of us talk to him at length somewhere. I guess at the rally this year about it and he's very forthright about it. And he said, you know, I had to think about my two little boys, I mean, they were going to be without a mother. He said they, the doctors told us that she, there was a 90 to 95% chance she was not going to survive. The toxic shock syndrome she had, she was dealing with and they took some aggressive, some aggressive measures in her treatment and I don't know all the details, but they actually flipped her over during a coma, which he said almost I mean, it's sort of a last resort and whatever that did, it helped. And you know, in the matter of the week, he gets the call on a Tuesday night before the master's the week before down here practicing. She says you need to come home. This is pretty bad. And he gets home and they're getting their hour or two from putting her into a medically induced coma. And then a week later on Wednesday morning, she wakes up and according to him, the first words were sorry about the master's. Now here she is back this week and Wednesday, she's going to caddy form in the part three of the cool little boys will have their white jumpsuits on. You know, Mark said it couldn't help but change the way he approaches the game. And he's still fiery, still competitive, but it's easy to sort of get past whatever happens on the golf course because of what they've been through and that she's 80% recovered and they anticipate a full recovery. And that's I think one of the things that people who cover golf like about what we get to do is rather than write about teams you're writing about people and rather than always write about sort of a stroke and distance and you're writing about their stories and Mark Leachman has quite a story. Yeah, boy, there's not going to be a dry eye in the house with Audrey Caddy during the part three contest on Wednesday. Leachman is a very good player of came within a whisker of winning the Clara Jugget's and Andrew's last year and was in contention at Augusta just a few years back when Adam Scott was the first Australian to slip on the green jacket. No Tiger Woods this week Ron, we were kind of hanging in there until the end of last week with maybe a glimmer of hope that he might see it up this week, not healthy enough to do so. How long will the shadow be that's hanging over the tournament this week? Or do you not see it that way? I think sadly, I guess. I mean, we've sort of gotten used to not having Tiger play in right now. I mean, so I think we've sort of moved on and not exactly out of sight out of mind, but you just understand that he's not part of the story right now and I expect he will he's trying to be at the Champions dinner and make show up under the tree for a few minutes and all that. But I think once it starts, we will sort of forget that Tiger's not part of it. Would it be better if he rear? Absolutely, especially if he were to get back to full health and back to fully being Tiger. I mean, yes, he's 40 now, but a lot of guys want a lot of tournaments after 40 weeks, whether when and where we see him back, who knows? We sort of sit around and try to take our guesses and admit that's all we're doing is guessing. We don't know how long before we get back and see him on the golf course competitively again. But yeah, I mean, he's missed. It would be it would just imagine if that element were added to the storyline, we already got sort of percolating before this started. Yeah, one of those story lines is Rory McElroy chasing the career grand slam. The the heightened pressure on Rory last year in this very same scenario was very heavy. Maybe it's lightened up a little bit this year with the emergence of speed and Jason Day. What are you expecting from Rory this week? It's always hard to tell with him, Ron. Yeah, it is hard to tell. I think you're right. I think there was an almost mothering attention on him leading into the master's last year because the career grand slam and he had won two in a row going in. And so it's a little different. Now, you know, he's shown flashes of playing really well. And then suddenly he just has a day where it just sort of goes a little bit off the rails and it puts him out of position in terms of winning tournaments. I think it's a fine line. But of all the players, the best players, I think at their best, I think Rory's a little better than everybody else. I think look at what he's done to his point in his career. I think he feels energized by the change in the putting grip and all that. But he's just not quite sharp enough. I mean, and we know how important it is to get it in the right spots, particularly on the green. Well, I think he's like a lot of guys wanting to just dial it in a little bit. I mean, Jason Day has looked terrific the last couple of months, last month or so. I mean, other guys, Ricky Fowler had it. Little edges. Dog, maybe like we were talking about Jordan's speed, he's not quite as sharp as he wants. But I think that's what these first few days that are about signing that edge and I do think forgot like Phil Mitchell something that there's been no question. He's been playing tournaments thinking about Augusta, talking about, he's talking about a show last week that he was hitting drivers because that's what he's got to hit even if it didn't fit the whole because that's what he's got to hit down here. So I just think that there are a lot of captivating possibilities right now. The late Pat Conroy, as you wrote, said the most powerful words in English are tell me a story. It's time for another master story. We can't wait. Ron Green certainly will tell his story after everything is decided on Sunday evening. We look forward to that. Ron, I appreciate your time as always. Good catching up with you again. Sorry about your Tar Heels, but try to enjoy the week there. I will move right on past that and look forward to this. It was a fun ride to watch him get where they got and we'll just move on. This should be pretty good next year. Thank you, Ron. Have a good week. All right, thank you. All right. Some serious master's longevity there for the Green family between Ron and his dad, Ron Green, senior and just doing the math, they have together covered close to 100 master's tournaments. Incredible. It's an amazing run. Ron's words always in describing the golf world and general and the master's in particular are eloquent. You can read him at the global golf post dot com and check him out on Twitter at Ron Green, Jr. CBS Sports is set to broadcast the 2016 Masters for the 61st consecutive year with live third coverage Saturday three to seven Eastern final round coverage Sunday two to seven p.m. Eastern. Not many men understand the magnitude of the tournament or the golf course itself more than our next guest. Pleasure to welcome three time Masters champion Sir Nick Faldo to the talk of the tour podcast. Nick, welcome. Thank you. How's your week going up there so far? Oh, it's beautiful. Yeah, it's always magnificent. We've got the weather blue skies to go close. The atmosphere is all fantastic. I listened to Adam Scott's press conference this morning. He said it's hard to wipe the smile off your face when you come back here year after year. Is that the feeling you still get as a three time champion after all these years? Well, very fortunate. Yeah, I might have to come back on some day. I played my son. That was one of our little tweets. He couldn't sing a guess. So, sort of the tradition with my boys and we're going to set them up last 10 years. We have to walk into the ground and sit there and break for Sunday morning when they go. There's more around now because it was a good guy to impart to him. But you sit on the back balcony and what's the world go by? It's great and then go and play. And we had a fun day. And of course now they've had to practice rounds and everybody's into it. And yeah, I mean, everything about the masters, the way to do things, the way things look is, you know, just give it a perfection. You had a playful moment with the defending champion on Washington Road driving in this morning. Can you tell us about it? Yeah, it's easy for us. We're trying to carve in because it's rapid. You know, we wouldn't know. We're trying to walk out with ways that become in the club. And the route we chose, obviously, didn't work. And then I'm sitting down and put the fish of car pulls up the side and the window goes down in here. And children, hey, you might as well pull in. I just put three, two things about them, three things. One, they needed to have them play free masters. Yeah, I think, OK, you've got a point. I'll let it, I'll let it in. So I'm quite fine. It's a good kid. It's a good, you know, you're always good to get a closer, get a fun hat, which is good. He's a great kid. He'll be hosting the champions center tonight as we record this on Tuesday afternoon. You've been to so many of those through the years. Take me inside that room and what the atmosphere is like is the stories are being watched. Well, it's really nice now. We've got a good, little routine. We've had we have all nerves on the balcony. We've got to be racing. Maybe a contributing for staff for that. We've got sushi outside. We've got cramp and shrimp and we've achieved that sort of thing. And then we've moonable and have a chat. And something everybody wants to be there. The chat is all about signing and then we head in the official photograph. And then we basically got around the corner of the table. We had actually down in the South African corner with several women and Gary Claire and Charles Royce. So I'm in these days. You've done that. And it's wild. It's really such a cool. And we've had some. And, uh, catering. You get some kind of emotions as you know. Some of the boys are in their stories and, uh, how person it means to them to be part of the street and the club. Uh, we have some, we have some, we do not even it's just, uh, just the players to the champions and, uh, and the channel. And that's it. What speed is done finishing second and first, Nick. It is first two appearances is unprecedented. No one has done that. Uh, not even the great Jack Nick was there through the years. And that's astounding when you consider how difficult it can be for a player to figure out the puzzle that is Augusta National. When did the light kind of come on for you as a competitor? Yeah, I didn't come that quick. No, I have, I have a, uh, I played a, uh, a few. And I was, I was very much in, in awe of, uh, as the masters and, uh, been quite a hand at it for a while and, uh, that I played, I played, I played the country when he won and won the Sunday. And that was, I was missing the other way. I was like, wow, if you, if you follow in, you have to hold, you have to hold some crazy parts. Um, you know, they made a famous one on 10, but they made an amazing one down the 14th Queen. They're down here at 12th. They put, uh, the power on after all that sort of thing you just got to be able to do. And, uh, if that spurred me on, to, to my win, so you have a red board and then it's done a set of, as a goal in those two of you that don't come doing that, it's just fully short to bother and, and then comes out the next year, you know, with that knowledge and then, and then just walks away with it last year. So that was, uh, um, yeah, an incredible performance. So, I'm going to be quite easy this year's game. Maybe just a, just a smoozing up and not just frustrating. Um, so we should say, what the weather is, that was actually pretty positive. We're all talking to Nick because we're going to change of the five minutes, but it's enough weather for those in Friday. The smart players approach this golf course with great respect and great awareness of where the trouble is and it's everywhere. But is it, um, is it a dangerous strategy to, to kind of be too defensive heading into the week for a player? Well, no, I think we call, you know, you call it defensive, regressive, or, you know, it's going to be small and that sort of thing because you just have to, you have to shy away and short, you know, whole locations, if the center is just not good, you pull off an absolute somebody best shot to get close to flag it. If it doesn't come up and you short drive yourself and you pull kicks away and, you know, chipping is just not easy. You're out of chipping up banks that are between, you know, ways tied sort of thing onto down slopes and it's so easy to come up short and then you've got the same shot again and then the effect that happens, you know, it's your best in the back of your mind, you get a little bit too hard and you keep leaving down those parts apart, you've got no chance. So, you know, it's having the ability to just keep in the right place, the right box, and then being a great, you know, every champion is in the top of whatever, so you have four in the puddings down. You just have to be puddings down faster for the week and, you know, this will go longer over the years and then you've got to go to the mountains. So, it's not a problem, but it's just, you've got to drive great and you've got to be great. Everything's really, really on this stage. How is your preparation for this broadcast different from the other weeks of the year? Take me through your week when you walk the golf course, how you sort of get around the property when you talk to the players, what the conversations are like? Yeah, well, of course, I've said I've played some before and I've done all the artists work and I keep adding little slopes and I think it's interesting. I was hitting parts from the phone spot at the different hole locations, but not that much different. You know, it's really cool. You are. And the good example is the sift hole. I was hitting parts from back left. I found the plateau and if the flag is, I can't describe it. So, just over the ridge, the dangerous ridge, which is closer to the ridge. Well, that part was breaking like 12 feet and from this particular spot, but if it was towards the back of the tree, even though it's three or four paces and you still get up the same stairs, well, then it was half that amount of breaks. It's not interesting. So, I was trying to find a couple more greens like that. So, I'm right. It's kind of like local knowledge or, yeah, simply that, that's experienced it. And some areas on the green to different hole locations. It can make a huge difference. And the team can't describe these greens, but how must they break? It might only have a 1% or 3% slope, but because this was moving so far from the slope just runs throughout it. It's also taken in a stop. So, to use to get the part of the perfect speed, you have to travel and trip with what you, what you originally look at. You know, that's a, that takes experience to believe, wow, this part is not only the whatever, the 15, you know, 15 foot parts out here and you can comfortably have somewhere between two and three feet of those. And that takes a bit of shock, but really believe it's going to come down. And if you bounce into all you undercut it, you know, and you've got fractions you have, and you take the fraction and then you, which is gone, six feet apart. So, that is, that is what's going on. And it doesn't let you lose. So, doesn't give you, you know, actually run for a couple of holes, there's no, there's no easy checks on this one as well as it's all. And then it's basically, you're under pressure with every shot. Sir, Nick Faldo is our guest three-time Masters Champion terrific article written by James Corgan in a telegraph back in the UK that I read this morning about the 96 Masters in which Greg Norman surrendered that six shot lead on Sunday. He shot 78, you shot 67. Do you think you're 67 in the the animals of the game is a little overlooked because of the way Greg sort of collapsed that day? Well, I was, I don't know the mind of the story, but I think that goes with no day, that round ago was as good as anything of the weekend. Number one, the lowest part of the weekend, that includes all the guys going up to, you know, settle in Sunday more and just see willingness to go into everything. So, that was impressive. I actually hit, I actually when the sun didn't hit, I'll be green. I both fell off the side of the fifth green, but she's really on every green, you know, it fell off the back of 15, but I was a teacher at part five. You know, I said, that counts. So, I'm, I'm, I'm the first ranking day in a strategy day. That was one of the closest ones I played in, since you're going to get to find that in classes. But, on the level of the very typical course that was, I don't think that was the degree to get. So, for me, that was really one of my great rounds. 96, you were the last Brit to win the Masters, Ola Bobble in 99, the last European to win the Masters. Nick, it's been a long drought, hasn't it? Yeah, you're right. 17 years since last year, and I'm proud of that. Yeah, I'm able to win. I've been here for 12 years, something right now. I think he's 30. He was just a spearhead to that. I mean, everybody called it and, and, and, and, and, and, and and, and, and, and, and, and we had a amazing running. That was the backbone of the European sort of, I think it had a backbone right back. So, certainly for a while. And, well, yeah, and, so, since Britain has gone quite for about many years, but who knows? I mean, Roy, the Master of Education who knows who they did, and a couple of other guys you never know. Right, well, she's in the back and done with it. She said a baby last week. The other, the other guys played maybe after a baby, not them. And the baby, if you know what I mean. Right, Sean. Well, for me, I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm Matthew Lee Paul, this, you know, three weeks prior to 89. And I went on to go and she never met up with me. It's, it's, it's, it's going to do it. Just got a quick minute left here. Who's the guy to meet this week? Who's going to slip on the green jackets on the evening? That's a tough one. I mean, I'm, I'm worried about this weather, and the prevent could just, just wreck anybody. Um, but, you know, the guys in Southern Hemisphere have swung on. You know, you obviously change them very Adam Scott. We'll use case and show to it. So one early on the floor of the swing. I like those guys that obviously didn't go out of course. Everything I like was lucky to do it. What we'll probably do again. I feel like that one more climb up the road we don't know. But it's good. It's going to be, it's going to be a unique time for them to come in. Another master's story to be told is that we're going to be able to be able to be able to have the opportunity to be able to do it. And, uh, Sir Nick Faldo in the CBS Sports Golf team will bring it to you Saturday, three to seven Eastern Sunday, two to seven. Nick, thank you so much. Enjoy the week up there. Well, not the greatest technical quality to that interview. I do apologize. We tried a couple of different audio settings. We tried a couple of different phone lines and, uh, there was just no getting around it. I'm sorry about that. There was just no chat with a three-time master's champion. So my thanks again to Sir Nick Faldo, 80th master's all set for Thursday and, uh, our next guest doing his normal yeoman's work and doing it under adverse health conditions. Fantasy Insider Rob Bolton has very much on the disabled list battling the flu. But, uh, he's a gamer. He's the Cal Ripken of Fantasy golf and, uh, is agreed once again to keep the Iron Man streak intact and deliver his segment here. I'll talk to the tour. How are you, Big fella? You all right? You going to make it? You know, I wish I could say it was up late celebrating, uh, the Cubs, uh, you know, season opening white wash of the Anaheim Angels, of Los Angeles, the Angels of Anaheim. But, uh, no, unfortunately, we've, you know, something's going around and I've had it twice now in three weeks. But, I am here. I'm always, always in a good mood to speak with you and, uh, and, uh, we are in the best of moods given what's on tap this week's morning. Your voice is kind of sexy. I'm not going to lie to you. [laughs] You called my 900 number. [laughs] Let's get right into this. We'll keep this, uh, abbreviated. We'll try and spare your last breaths here. Uh, let's get right to, uh, the power rankings. Let's do that because I think people are familiar enough with the golf course. We can, uh, we can sort of bypass that for now. And, you've got Mr. Spieth as the defending champion. And, uh, he's a fifth in the power rankings. I don't know what's the make of, uh, of Spieth and his chances this week. They figured it'd be very good given his track record there the last couple of years. Rob, what do you think? Yeah, let's think so. And let's hope so. Uh, what's phenomenal about the timing of this is that, you know, people start talking about the Masters as soon as the PGA Championship is over in August. And this year, what July, or June, and I'm not even sure when it is, this year, I have to look it up. It's not for a while now, but, uh, and then after the holidays, people start ramping into, you know, conversation about the Masters and who's going to contend. And naturally everybody, uh, who's anybody in golf is thinking about it. And, you know, the guys that are out there hitting the shots are thinking about it and preparing and planning for it. And at various points, of 2016, there has been any number of favorites for this week's tournament. However, there really isn't one. There's not a standout, which is exciting, I think. There's a whole bunch of number two, a whole bunch of them. Uh, and, you know, I don't have control over, you know, numbering the power rankings. Only where the guys slot. Speed, he's like a 1D, a 2C, whatever. And the problem is, he's spraying it right. Well, you can do that to some degree, uh, at Augusta National. Not too far right. Obviously, it's a drawers track and he's had plenty of success here. However, he needs to figure that out as long as he can hit it straight or somewhat straight, he'll be fine. Because, you know, this is a second shot track. He doesn't want to put himself in any trouble. He may not have the best angles. But, uh, man, he's a scorer, as we know. Twenty-eight birdies last year, that's, that's a, it, in, in '79 edition. Mm-hmm. All prime high. Um, confidence is high again this week, even though he's fifth, in the power rankings. Rory McElroy is fourth in the power rankings. Once again, Rory goes for the career grand slam this week. What do you think? I like he's sort of quiet entering this week. I mean, he, he finished fourth year last year. It's a career high, a career best. A last year in this first attempt at, at the grand slam, career grand slam. So, uh, there's enough there in terms of, of, of history. Um, you know, it's amazing whether you're only twenty-six. Mm-hmm. Yeah, and this is his age appearance. That's really something for a guy of his age. Certainly his talent is worthy of it. Multiple major champion and all that. Uh, I like the fact that, uh, he, he, he's little more in control of his schedule this week, not playing the part three. I like that name, not necessarily best for the people there, but, uh, you know, he, he's got a job to do this week's one. And the fourth field feels a little bit low for him given all of that. Uh, but he knows how to get around here and, uh, he's been playing well enough lately to, uh, to retain our confidence upon arrival. Uh, but there's just a, just, you know, three other guys that deserve the, uh, the spots above him in the power rankings, in my opinion. Our guest is, uh, Barry White in for Rob Bolton, that is the usual power ranking segment here this week. Adam Scott at number three. Uh, I put him play well at the match play. Actually got knocked out, didn't make it to the round of sixteen. I thought he actually had a pretty productive few days and then took last week off. So, uh, Scotty, two wins on the floor to swing, rested and ready to go this week. You know, I'm not Barry White, uh, but, uh, I am a complicated man. No one understands me about that one. [Laughter] I think you're, I think you're a little loopy on Robod's Austin or something, man. I think it's, I think it's all of the, the expired music that I've been popping like I'm trying to win some sort of content. Uh, man, go on. But I'm here. Uh, listen, I don't remember what you said about Adam Scott, but, uh, uh, I don't apologize for that. I, I was really sort of in another world today. Uh, but, uh, the only odds he'd ever, uh, you know, flip the green jacket on. Uh, yeah, he, listen, uh, I like the fact that he didn't necessarily get too far in the match play. Uh, it gives him an opportunity to get a couple of extra days of rest and, uh, and here he is again, uh, here this week. Um, he's one of those guys where if this, if the master was a month ago, he would have been number one of the power ranking, simply because he had such a toward run, you know, tight for second at Riviera and then went, uh, win, win. Uh, Noah's how to play here, playing exceptionally well, rested and, uh, he has the comportment and the temperament too. Uh, to prevail once again. So we've hit Scott, McElroy's speed, uh, Nicholson Watson, Justin Rose. We're also in the top 10, uh, Henry Stenson, Dustin Johnson. So as we, as we sort of wind down to number one here, people listening, probably thinking, "Well, of course Rob Bolton has Jason Day. It's off his power rankings." But no, he checks in at number two this week, but it's got to be sort of a, as you said, a 1A more than a 2, right? It is, uh, and listen, he has two top three finishes, including in his debut a few years ago, in five starts. Um, wins in his last two entering, um, and, uh, the issue with Day is simply his inconsistency. Now, um, those are an argument that would say, you know, he's been injured upon arrival a couple of times, not feeling the best. And, uh, obviously that's always the concern for him, not necessarily this week, but, uh, his favored, uh, ball flight doesn't necessarily work here all of the time, and, uh, it's, it's, it's such a minute difference. If, if we look at him statistically, I would like him to throttle back a little bit off the tee, maybe a three-wood little ball off, and then, then the driver, and just stay out of some of that trouble. But, again, he has the experience. Uh, I would say that if you wanted to slot him at number one and, uh, and shuffle these guys around, nor, you know, my behalf, um, just a matter of the fact that only one of these guys can sit at number one. And that is, uh, that is Ricky Fowler, and we can digest all the numbers, uh, and kick those around, but I like what you wrote in the comments section. It's on the power rankings. It's time. And you think it's Fowler's time this week, huh? Yeah, and that's a nod to, you know, you and I follow the game closely enough. We know what that means, sort of in a, in a broad sense, and that's, you know, the top five's in the majors two years ago. Uh, the one of the players, uh, the one in Scotland, uh, you know, the success sense. He's had a tremendous, uh, uh, career overall. He's trending to something like this. The success at Augusta National isn't as necessarily as impressive as the other guys. We've already discussed, but he's never missed a cut and five starts. Uh, he has one top five, um, uh, the tee for, tee 12 last year. That's enough for me. Uh, he's, he's trending toward it. Uh, I would say also from a fanist. He needs to be in every lineup. Um, most of all, he's a closer. It's funny. And I think that's the, that's the number one thing that you can't necessarily quantify, but if you launched enough of him, you know, exactly what I mean. He's proved to time it again. Uh, ignore, uh, the farmer's missed cut. He's played tremendously all year. There's enough form there. Uh, so again, we go back to the original comment, you know, pick any week of the year, any one of these guys could have sat number one in this power ranking. So follower gets the nod. I like the fact that he's a closer. Uh, everybody seems to be landing on eight or 10 guys that will be most likely to win this week, but, uh, you delivered some content for the website with a list of some sleepers. Uh, give me one. Give me the guy at the top there. I'm looking right at him. The man of the green hat. Yeah, Charlie Hoffman. Uh, he's, he's shown enough signs lately to deserve a spot in that feature. And, uh, you know, led after the first two rounds, both of the first two rounds last week in Houston, uh, played pretty well in the couple weeks leading up to the match play. Uh, and he's, he's a guy who's had success here. I tied for the ninth, uh, at last year's master's quantity. So, uh, there's enough of the converging trends as we like to say for Hoffman, but that he's arching into the right area to contend again. He's a guy that he's going to come cheap in every format and he's going to hit, he's going to be a guy that's going to help a, help a few gamers out there, uh, win some, win some nice things this week at Augusta. Big fella, you are a gamer. I mean that. And if nothing else, you have an excuse to lay flat on your back Thursday through Sunday and watch some masters. Have I worked out okay for you? I think I'll use that excuse. You know I will. Uh, at Rob Bolton, go, follow him on Twitter. Wish him well. Thank you, Rob. All right, 20. Always a pleasure. Take care. That'll do it for the talk of the tour podcast. Looking forward to another scintillating masters this week. Hope you enjoyed as much as I plan to. Thanks to my guests, Ron Green Jr. Rob Bolton and of course Sir Nick Valdo. This is the last pod of the week. We'll crank out three next week starting on Monday of the RBC Heritage in Hilton Head. Remember, you can listen and download the show by visiting dgatur.com/podcasts and you can access Talk of the Tour and all of our other content via iTunes, Tune In and Stitcher. Just log on to pgatur.com/podcasts and subscribe today. I'm John Spontzeck. Thanks for listening and remember how many cares one loses when one decides not to be something, but to be someone. Think about it, people. I'll talk to you next Monday. [MUSIC PLAYING]