For Champions, Only a Year to Throw on the Green Jacket
For the first year after their victory, winners can take the jacket with them wherever they please. Bubba Watson took it to his high school, his elementary school, his middle school and the University of Georgia.
Some topics never go away at the Masters. One of them is the many things that newly-crowned champions do with the green jackets they are awarded.
For the first year after their victory, winners can take the jacket with them wherever they please.
Australia's Adam Scott took it around the world. Bubba Watson took it to his high school, his elementary school, his middle school and the University of Georgia.
Watson also said that when he kept the jacket at his home, he would hide it from visitors.
"I don't let anybody see or touch it," he said. "I'm very protective of it."
Phil Mickelson has taken a vastly different approach. He wore it to all the corporate outings he was invited to, and to any event. And then he used it as a surprise golf prop.
"I would put it in my golf bag and if it was chilly in the morning, I would pull it out," Mickelson, a three-time Masters champion, said. "It's fun to do that with that jacket. I wouldn't carry three jackets around with me, but I would say, 'I've got two more, if you're cold as well.'
"But that's just being rude. You've got to be careful who you say that stuff to. Some people can take it, some people can't."
The champions' jackets remain at the Augusta National Golf Club after the first anniversary of a player's victory. Scott said he slips it on whenever he goes to the club, even for practice rounds.
"I'll go to the club and wear it to dinner," Scott said, smiling. "It's a great feeling. I put it on, check that it still fits. It feels very good. I look forward to it.
"You know there's only so many of them in the world."
Seeking Swagger
Phil Mickelson began his appearance at a news conference Tuesday by describing his recent play.
"The last year and a half has not been my best," Mickelson said.
He paused, then added: "It's been terrible."
But Mickelson believes he is regaining some of his confident swagger.
"I'm getting my aggressive play back, and that's what I need for my game," he said. "It lets me go for birdies, and that's what I need to do.
"I feel like I'm coming around. I don't know if it'll be in time this week, but I hope so."
Mickelson said he was healthy, in part, because he was working out more often.
"Last year, I had some back tightness," he said. "My spine and everything is healthy, but I had muscle tightness and it was because I didn't put in the time working out. As I get older, I need to put in more time than I used to. So this offseason I did, and now my back has been great."
Groupings Set
The pairings for Thursday's first round were announced Tuesday. One of the featured groups will no doubt be Phil Mickelson, Rory McIlroy and Ryan Moore, who ranks ninth on the PGA Tour money list.
Adam Scott will be playing with Dustin Johnson. Three top contenders are in one group: Jordan Spieth, Billy Horschel and Henrik Stenson. Tiger Woods will tee off in the penultimate grouping of the day, starting at 1:48 p.m., with Jimmy Walker and Jamie Donaldson. That tee time will assure that Woods is finishing near the conclusion of the live broadcast on national television.
But the marquee grouping will be the last to play. It features three of the best players not to win a major championship: Jason Day, Sergio Garcia and Rickie Fowler.
© The New York Times 2015