The Masters 2014: Lowdown on what to expect at Augusta

Standard Sport takes a look at what could be in store at the first Major of the golfing season.

Who are the favourites?

Not much to split Rory McIlroy, Adam Scott and Phil Mickelson. McIlroy has the game for Augusta, leading by four on the final morning three years ago. Shot the lights out of Houston last Sunday with a 65, the low score of the day. Defending champion Scott blitzed Bay Hill for two days last month to lead by seven at halfway but only three have retained the green jacket. Three-time winner Mickelson loves it here and finished top 10 last week. Matt Kuchar and Sergio Garcia are also in form and much fancied.

Could a Brit spring a surprise?

Ian Poulter gets the trip. Led at halfway four years ago and has a best finish of seventh. If he has a Ryder Cup week on the greens he could fill his boots. Jamie Donaldson, who aced the sixth on his debut last year, finished second behind Reed at the WGC-Cadillac and is finding American golf much to his taste. The shoulder injury stalling the progress of Justin Rose has cleared up. If he finds anything like the consistency that took him to last year’s US Open title he will be a serious threat. Lee Westwood always does well here.

What are the key holes?

The par-3 fourth can be an early card wrecker off the back tee. Ranked No1 in difficulty last year, it’s 240 yards, gun-barrel straight and bedevilled by wind, making shot selection tricky. The extra 40 yards added to the seventh in 2006 transformed this hole from one of the easiest to one of the hardest. Narrow, tree-lined fairway means driver is a risk and small, elevated, sloping green is harder to find from further back. The par-five at the exit of Amen Corner, 13, and 15, both offer big chances of a birdie on the run home.

Why’s Augusta so special?

There is simply no place like it. The biggest commercial driver in golf with money to throw at any problem. The result is golfing perfection, a horticultural paradise, visually stunning with dramatic elevation changes that rattle the senses. The course rewards attacking golf, it is designed for drama, a ‘who dares wins’ environment. The set-piece holes around Amen corner (11, 12, 13) and the complex around the 15th and 16th greens produce the most excitement in the most beautiful setting. It’s not the real world but for one week a year it doesn’t hurt to look the other way.