We delve into the archives to find Ben Coley's preview of the 1997 Masters, where a surefire major winner of the future featured among four tips.
Recommended bets
3pts win Greg Norman at 8/1
1pt e.w. Colin Montgomerie at 16/1 (1/5 1,2,3)
1pt e.w. Ernie Els at 16/1 (1/5 1,2,3)
0.5pt Woods to win by 10 or more shots at 500/1
- For details of our tipping record, send a stamped, addressed envelope to The Sporting Life, PO Box 2315
- This, obviously, is a parody - our golf tipster was aged 11 at the time of the 1997 Masters
One year on from his famous collapse, GREG NORMAN remains atop the world rankings - and he's once again atop the betting for The Masters, which begins at Augusta National on Thursday, live on the BBC.
The Australian understandably took a while to get over his capitulation as the Green Jacket went to Nick Faldo, a man surely on his way to knighthood, in one of the most spectacular and in some ways surprising Sundays this championship has ever produced.
According to the betting shops which seem to be popping up everywhere, these two are closely matched once more - and yet there is a new name lurking among the favourites.
Tiger Woods has caused quite a stir since turning professional, winning twice in three weeks to reach the Tour Championship and kicking off this year in a similar vein.
At just 21, he has the golfing world at his feet - and yet there is still much he has to learn, particularly here at Augusta National where experience is so vital, and where he missed the cut on his second visit 12 months ago.
As the saying goes, 'drive for show, putt for dough', and while he looks reasonable on the greens, these lightning surfaces will test his nerve. Winning a Las Vegas Invitational is one thing; winning major championships is another entirely, and he would not be the first prodigy to fail the acid test.
Woods, world number 13, is quoted at the same odds as Norman and that just looks wrong. For all his future may well be bright, we are likely a year or two away from him having the experience to match his undoubted ability. At Augusta, both are needed, and I expect a slow start to cost him.
Norman on the other hand has both experience and ability in spades, and he can put last year behind him and win a first Masters, to go with the two Open Championships already in the bag.
Granted, his form has dipped since winning a match play event to start the year, but there have been better signs lately and don't forget he missed the cut at Sawgrass before this tournament last year.
He's hitting the ball superbly - if they stop procrastinating at the Columbia Business School and produce some kind of 'strokes gained' formula, I suspect it'll prove Norman to be the best of the lot - and he putts these greens perfectly well.
Norman has had a couple of heartbreaks here but they will soon be forgotten if he can win on Sunday night, in doing so becoming the first Australian to don a Green Jacket.
Inspired by the way his countrymen in Erinsborough have rallied round following the fire which ruined Lou's bus, Norman is a strong fancy.
1997 Masters: Coverage details
- TV: BBC Two, coverage begins roughly two hours later than you'd think
- Wireless: Between episodes of The Archers, which has surely run its course
- Newspapers: Reports in second editions of The Sporting Life
- Magazines: FHM promise to keep readers abreast of the situation
- Ceefax: Pages 480-484
Next on the list is COLIN MONTGOMERIE, despite a slight worry that his fade isn't ideal for this course.
It hasn't stopped one or two legends of the sport and nor should it be considered a problem for Scotland's finest golfer, who will surely go on to win his first major championship and one or two more after that.
Montgomerie won't take any nonsense should he find himself faced with Woods and seemed ready for a squabble when speaking with the media at Doral recently. It's that fiery mindset which should make him a multiple winner in the US, perhaps even starting this week.
"I don't know about breaking through in America," he spat, when asked what he needed to do to convert a series of near-misses on the PGA Tour. "I've lost in two major playoffs over here, that's not too bad."
Seventh in the Players last time was another nice effort and you suspect he's always had half an eye on this, so back the Scot to fulfil his destiny at what could prove a generous price - especially with as many as three places on offer each-way.
ERNIE ELS is the other interesting one towards the front of the betting and it seems unthinkable he won't win a Green Jacket at some stage.
There have been murmurings in South Africa about a new wave of youngsters including Charl Schwartzel, but he's 12 years old and, for now at least, talk of a Masters victory feels a little premature.
His friend Louis Oosthuizen is thought to be equally promising, albeit his practice has been limited by Tomy's release of a new toy digger which, they claim, is set to out-sell a new Japanese fad called 'Pokemon' when it hits the shops.
Make no mistake, Els remains the main man for now and while there's been a slight cooling off in terms of form this spring, a tie for 10th in the Players last time out - where he topped the driving distance charts with a meaty 278 yards off the tee and ranked first in putts-per-green-in-regulation - sets him up nicely for this.
Els - dubbed 'the rhythmical rhinoceros' by children's TV star Richard Bacon - has finishes of eighth and 12th here over the last three years, and has quickly demonstrated that this famous old course suits him down to the ground.
Others will tee off at the first in fear of what might happen once they reach the green, where four- and even five-putts are regular occurrences. Els ought to have no such issues and rates an each-way steal at the odds.
At a big price, David Berganio Jr is interesting on just his second Masters start, but concerns over his fitness force us to look elsewhere. Straight-hitting Justin Leonard could go well but looks more an Open type, while there's surely a limit to how often Fred Couples can turn up here and contend for all that he so obviously loves Augusta National.
As such it's best to stick to the three selections outright covered above, but given the unknowns around Woods there might be some mileage in exploring a new range of options some firms have come up with as the industry laughs off the rise of the internet.
Manny Bernstein are offering 50/1 about a hole-in-one, providing you're not a current or former member of the hole-in-one gang, and that looks worth taking, while Stanley have said they'll give money back as cash if your player isn't and never has been in the field.
There's a matched bet at Ladbrokes, which means if you stake £5 on the outright market, you'll get another £5 bet - providing you pay another £5.
The pick of the lot, however, is 'Ask-for-a-bet', a telephone service offered by the Tote providing you press the hash key after dialling. Via their credit line, we've been quoted 500/1 for Woods to win by 10 or more shots which, if he's as good as he thinks he is, could be worth some loose change.
There's no doubt Woods is golf's hottest property, and his confidence brings to mind the current UK number one single by one-day-to-be-outed-as-a-despicable-human R-Kelly - I Believe I Can Fly. Like R-Kelly (real name Robert), Woods is soaring. For now, though, expect Monty to clip his wings.
