He's never been one to follow the script, but golf fans have learnt to expect the unexpected with Bubba Watson. Three Majors, two WGC titles and eleven PGA Tour wins later, he's certainly a man for the big occasions. His 7&6 Sunday afternoon victory over Kevin Kisner made light work of what should have been a gruelling championship game, but the two-time Masters winner was no less emotional in celebration.

Elite Eliminations

World No. 1, current tournament champion and nailed-on favourite Dustin Johnson: eliminated with a day to spare. World No. 3 and last year's runner-up Jon Rahm: eliminated with a day to spare. World No... Oh, you get the picture. 14 of the world's top 18 entered the WGC Match Play; 4 made it to the knockout stages. Jordan Spieth fell to regular teammate Patrick Reed on Friday, Hideki Matsuyama carded back-to-back losses after opening with a win and Rory McIlroy's 1-2 record was flattering as he never really got going. Sergio Garcia and Tyrrell Hatton both lost in the first knockout round. Alex Noren and Justin Thomas both suffered semi-final defeats, but the loss was far more bitter for JT, who could have stolen the World No. 1 spot from DJ with a win over Bubba Watson. Third-place playoffs may be the least inspired matches in sport, and Noren's defeat of JT was the epitome of that.

In an event that usually brings the best players to the surface, the lack of top-10 representation in the knockouts will have bookies scratching their heads for Masters odds. Right now, the smart money is in your pocket.

Poulter Pain

When Ian Poulter dug out his 2012 Ryder Cup Miracle at Medinah putter, Tommy Fleetwood's fate was sealed. The veteran eased past the 27-year-old 3&2 to start the ball rolling on an undefeated group stage. The match play demon looked on his way to the kind of big-time result that would ensure an unlikely Masters qualification. In fact, after an impressive eight-birdie victory over Louis Oosthuizen, Poulter was told by multiple sources that he had qualified. But 10 minutes before teeing off in the quarter final against Kisner, a text message informed him that he actually hadn't qualified and would need another win to make the cut. Then, he crumbled. 8&6, to be precise.

Watson Wins

Bubba opened with a 5&3 after going 6UP at the turn and immediately looked like a contender. Despite halving his final group game against Julian Suri, it was a consistent tournament for the 39-year-old. He conquered Brian Harman 2&1, then an extremely fatigued Kiradech Aphibarnrat (5&3) practically handed him a play to the semi-final. Justin Thomas admitted to being distracted by the prospect of becoming World No. 1 as Bubba took control of the contest from the get-go. Bubba's scorecard boasted 3 birdies, an eagle and a lone bogey as he led from start to finish and came out 3&2 victor.

A bizarre tournament ended in bizarre fashion, with Bubba Watson's 7&6 victory the largest winning margin since the WGC changed to an 18-hole final in 2011. It was a damp squib; Kisner lost as much as Bubba won. Not the type of final that any fan wanted to see, to be quite honest, but they all count; especially this close to the Masters.

Credit: @DellMatchPlay - Official Twitter account of the WGC-Dell Match Play

Bubba Watson - What's in the Bag?

Driver: PING G400 LST

Fairway Wood: PING G

Irons: PING iBlade (2 iron), PING S55 (4-PW)

Wedges: PING Glide 2.0

Putter: PING PLD Anser

Golf Ball: Titleist Pro V1x

Written by Joe Carabini

joe.carabini@foremostgolf.com

As we edge closer and closer to the Masters, we'll see golf's elite put through the ultimate test in Austin, Texas this week, which concludes with 72 holes in 48 hours over the weekend... if they're lucky (lucky?!).

A Dip in the Pools

Gary Player once said "The more I practice, the luckier I get". He wasn't the first or the last man to say this, but he certainly made it popular on the golf course. Unfortunately, no matter how much you practice, there's not much you can do about the luck of the draw in the WGC Match Play. Admittedly, there's no such thing as an easy group when the field is made up of the top 64 golfers in the world. However, if you told Sergio Garcia that he'd drawn No. 62 of 64, he’d expect something kinder than Shubhanker Sharma. Pair that with last year's PGA Tour Rookie of the Year in Xander Shauffele and I don't fancy his chances. Sorry Sergio. Tommy Fleetwood had a similar case of bad luck, with the lowest-ranked player in his pool being match-play-master Ian Poulter.

Now, I can't go through every group, but there are some notable matchups to keep an eye out for. Justin Thomas will face off with Luke List again; a repeat of the Honda Classic playoff, as well as Patton Kizzire, who sits one behind FedEx Cup leader JT in the current standings. Jordan Spieth and Patrick Reed have teamed up 12 times in the past, but will lock horns for the first time this week. Australia's Jason Day faces a rematch of the 2016 final in this tournament against South African Louis Oosthuizen. Day won the previous fixture to move to World No. 1, but he now sits at No. 11- Oosthuizen's ranking during that final.

Texas Table Toppers

Tommy Fleetwood drawing Ian Poulter was unfortunate regardless, but the fact that the two Englishmen will face off on the opening day (highest-ranked vs. lowest-ranked) means that age won't provide the helping hand Fleetwood would've hoped for. That said, if the 27-year-old can win on the opening day then I think he's got a serious chance of silverware. On the topic of Englishmen, Paul Casey should top his group with form on his side, as should Tyrrell Hatton, who finished T3 at the WGC-Mexico Championship. An Englishman to win the tournament would be solid bet this week.

We would all expect Rory McIlroy to steamroll Brian Harman, Jhonattan Vegas & Peter Uihlein, but the rest of the world's top 10 have competitive groups. Kevin Kisner, Adam Hadwin & Bernd Wiesberger will likely push Dustin Johnson to some decent golf, and Jon Rahm is right in saying his is "Certainly not an easy group" (Kiradech Aphibarnrat, Chez Reavie & Keegan Bradley). I also personally prefer Patrick Cantlay over Hideki Matsuyama. Meanwhile, veteran Phil Mickelson faces an uphill battle against Rafa Cabrera Bello, the highest-ranked unseeded/Pool B player in the field (No. 17).

I'm looking at these groups like a kid in a candy shop, wanting to discuss the possibilities of every single one in great depth, but I'm not sure my keyboard can take that sort of wear & tear. Therefore, I'll leave you with this: it should be a great week for the Englishmen. Fleetwood, Casey and Hatton are all big threats at big odds, with Casey given a generous draw and youth favouring Fleetwood & Hatton over a whopping 126 holes.

No Tiger? No trouble. We won't be short of quality golf this week.

Credit: @PGATOUR - Official Twitter account of PGA Tour

Written by Joe Carabini

joe.carabini@foremostgolf.com

The Masters? Next month? Oh, I had no idea. That explains a few things.

Rory McIlroy's first title in 18 months, the re-emergence of Henrik Stenson... Oh, and Tiger. Yeah, the Masters is around the corner.

Out of Hibernation

Much was made of Henrik Stenson not doing much since his 2016 Open Championship victory. His only win since came in the Wyndham Championship where, in all honesty, anything less would've been catastrophic given the standard of his challengers. But it was a different story in the opening round at Bay Hill. Rickie Fowler, Justin Rose, Rory McIlroy and, of course, Tiger Woods all shot -3 or better on Thursday. Stenson, though, struck -8. The Swede went 3-under on day 2 for a share of the lead with Bryson DeChambeau heading into the weekend. Back-to-back 1-under rounds of 71 saw him fail to keep pace at the top and finish in fourth at -13, but the Callaway man has certainly rediscovered his game at the right time after falling from 9th to 15th in the Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR) already in 2018 (this result has lifted him back to 14th).

The Rory Story

McIlroy has acknowledged many times the extraordinary influence of his mentality on his performance. Whilst psychology is a critical part of any golfer's game, it is often the deciding factor for McIlroy. So, the fact that the Northern Irishman appears to have returned to a winning mentality less than a month before the Masters is HUGE. An incredible -8, bogey-free Sunday concluded with five birdies in his final six holes and a sublime final putt. His three stroke victory was made all the more impressive by the low scores of the chasing pack forcing him to an -18. We are talking about Rory McIlroy here, so there is no telling what will happen between now and the Masters, but Augusta cannot come soon enough for the now-World No. 7.

Tiger Tracker

He's been the talk of the town in 2018 and that talk will not stop flowing now. His 10-under T5 doesn't tell the full story (does it ever?). Going 11-under on par-fives and 1-under on par-fours, he looked like the Tiger Woods of years gone by; capitalising on opportunities and making few mistakes. However, 2-over on par-threes for the week makes it very clear where the improvement needs to come. We saw a similar pattern at the Valspar Championship, where he went PAR, -3, -6 on par-threes, fours & fives respectively. His level-par Friday was seen as a bad day by many, but that only emphasises his abilities. After all, how many 42-year-old golfers would call level-par a bad day after four back surgeries?

Rory McIlroy - What's in the Back?

Driver: TaylorMade M3 460

3-Wood: TaylorMade M3

5-Wood: TaylorMade M3

Irons: TaylorMade P-750

Wedges: TaylorMade Milled Grind

Putter: TaylorMade TP Collection Soto

Golf Ball: TaylorMade TP5x

Written by Joe Carabini

joe.carabini@foremostgolf.com

He's back. No question. Tiger Woods is Tiger Woods once more.

Out of the Woods

No, he didn't win. But no, we can't ignore him. A mixed bag of five birdies and four bogeys left him 1-under after an opening round of 70, before a sublime showing on Friday catapulted him into contention. A lone bogey at the ninth- his final hole- would have sent most players into the weekend struggling to maintain focus and confidence and, subsequently, form. But Tiger Woods is not most players. Saturday saw the 14-time major champion go one better (literally) with a 4-under 67. The scorecard doesn't tell the full story, though. Tiger silenced his critics off-the-tee as worries about his back went up in smoke. If he silenced his critics off-the-tee, his classy short game left them- and everybody else- utterly speechless.

Whilst the final day wasn't quite what he would have hoped for, Tiger punished any viewers who switched off early by sinking a 44-foot birdie on the last. Typical Tiger.

Whatever your opinion on Tiger Woods may be (and we all have one), the final round viewing figures, the reaction to his final putt, the non-stop talk of his Masters potential... this is a wonderful advert for golf.

The Forgotten Tournament

They say that nobody ever remembers the runners-up, and that will be the case for Patrick Reed, who finished T2. But the man who shared second-place with Reed- a certain Tiger Woods- has cast a shadow over Paul Casey's victory in Florida. Poor Paul Casey will be left with nothing but a PGA Tour victory, a shedload of Ryder Cup points, five-spot rise in the Official World Golf Rankings (OWGR) and a million dollars. How could you not feel sorry for the Englishman? I mean, imagine the hassle of exchanging that into sterling... and with the exchange rate as it is! My heart goes out to you, Mr Casey.

Anyway, back to the tournament. Round one saw Canadian rookie Corey Connors take the clubhouse lead with a 4-under 67. Connors continued to impress with -2 on Friday to lead at 6-under heading into the weekend; two clear of Tiger, Brand Snedeker, Ryan Palmer, Kelly Kraft and eventual winner Paul Casey. Rory McIlroy bowed out early as a -3, -2 saw him miss the cut despite opening with ten consecutive pars. The shot of the tournament came from Justin Rose at the par-5 eleventh on day 3 as he holed an eagle from 120 yards; rolling down the flagstick to land directly into the hole. The pressure on Connors continued to mount as Tiger and Snedeker closed the gap to one, along with Englishman Rose following his -5 round.

The Innisbrook Resort Copperhead course staged an awesome Sunday of golf. Connors couldn't hold his nerve as he hit four bogeys and a double to go 6-over on the day and 3-under for the tournament, leaving him at a disappointing T16. Sergio Garcia surged up the leaderboard with a -6 final round to steal fourth spot, whilst Rose slipped to 1-over to share T5 with South Africa's Rory Sabbatini. Woods ensured wire-to-wire sub-par rounds with a -1, but Paul Casey ensure that the 44-foot birdie putt on the seventeenth was too little too late as he topped the field for the second time of the PGA Tour with -6 for the day and -10 for the tournament.

The victory is the first for Casey since the 2014 KLM Open and will undoubtedly launch him back into contention for a Ryder Cup place.

Paul Casey - What's in the Bag?

Driver: TaylorMade M4

Fairway Wood: TaylorMade M1

Hybrid: TaylorMade M3

Irons: Mizuno MP-25 (4), Mizuno MP-5 (5-PW)

Wedges: Titleist Vokey SM6

Putter: Scotty Cameron Circle T

Golf Ball: Titleist ProV1

Written by Joe Carabini

joe.carabini@foremostgolf.com

What a tournament. What a weekend. What a winner.

Phil Steam Ahead

If you can find me somebody who predicted Phil Mickelson to win (barring those who have predicted him to win every event for the past five years), I'll find you somebody outside of the Thomas family who didn't want him to win that playoff. Maybe I'll even find somebody who felt sorry for Tyrrell Hatton after the bobbled putt. Ok, maybe that's a bit of a stretch.

Almost five years after his famous 2013 Open Championship victory, Mickelson returned to the winners' circle as he became the oldest winner of a WGC event at the tender age of 47. 'Lefty' wasn't content with just winning the hearts of a generation of golf fans, and apparently isn't content with his 43rd career win. Following the win at Club de Golf Chapultepec, the PGA Tour legend was adamant about making it a half-century. Labelling himself a 'pretty optimistic guy' feels like a major understatement given the crop of young players he'll be competing against for the next seven wins, but who wouldn't love to see him do it?

How it Happened

21-year-old rising star Shubhankar Sharma led the way into the weekend after following an opening round of 6-under with a 5-under on Friday. A Saturday 69 on the par-71 course took him to 13-under and top spot heading into the final round. He couldn't hold on, though, as a 3-over Sunday saw him fall to T9. Tyrrell Hatton ensured an Englishman finished inside the top-3 for the second year running, with his 15-under earning him a T3 alongside Spain's Rafa Cabrera Bello. But it was in controversial circumstances that he missed out on a playoff spot as a substantial bobble on the green caused him to miss his par putt. There's no questioning that the putt did take a bobble, but a poor chip in the previous shot had brought frustration to the surface and the missed putt brought on a typical Tyrrell temper tantrum. A sore loser, to be frank, and his ungraceful reaction will not have earned him the sympathy he felt he was owed.

Justin Thomas was eleven off the pace at level-par heading into the weekend, but a remarkable course-record 62 took him to 9-under after consulting his father-turned-swing-coach by sending videos of himself practicing between rounds. Momentum carried Thomas to 14-under after 71 holes. 119 yards out, one hole left, two shots off the lead... was the eagle ever in doubt? Thomas watched on as Mickelson held par and Hatton faltered to set up a two-man playoff.

47 year-old Vs. 24 year-old. You could say that it came down to experience, but the 2017 FedEx Cup winner doesn't exactly lack experience in the way most do at his age. Still, Lefty held his nerve for a clutch par putt as JT fell to a bogey and runner-up spot. A crowd-pleaser in Mexico, that's for sure.

Phil Mickelson - What's in the Bag?

Driver: Callaway Rogue Sub Zero

Fairway Wood: Callaway Rogue Sub Zero

Hybrid: Callaway Rogue

Irons: Callaway Epic Pro (4-iron), Callaway X Forged 2018 (5-PW)

Wedges: Callaway Mack Daddy PM Grind

Putter: Odyssey Versa #9 White

Golf Ball: Callaway Chrome Soft X

Written by Joe Carabini

joe.carabini@foremostgolf.com

It's the strongest field we've seen all year. 45 of the world's top 50 will be part of the exclusive 65-man field at Mexico City's Club de Golf Chapultepec as it hosts the tournament for just the second time. With the best players from the PGA Tour and European Tour coming together, predicting a winner is not an enviable task. But whatever happens, we can be sure of entertainment.

Before we look at the players, acknowledging the course is unavoidable this week. Recording 7,603 feet at its lowest and 7,835 feet at its highest, Chapultepec has by far the highest altitude of any course on the PGA Tour. It also features the third-longest par-4 on the Tour, with the third hole measuring a scorecard yardage of 528. But not to worry, it's altitude to the rescue off the tee, helping carry players to the highest average driver distance on last year's PGA Tour.

I think we will be seeing some smiling European faces this week (in a Ryder Cup year... just for the record). Despite World No. 1 Dustin Johnson making it an American win at last year's event, Europe boasted four of the top five in England's Tommy Fleetwood & Ross Fisher, Spain's Jon Rahm and Belgium's Thomas Pieters respectively. Having risen to World No. 2 in remarkable fashion, Rahm is understandably favourite to topple Dustin this year. That said, Fleetwood jumps out at me. He may have slipped at a crucial moment in his pursuit of Dustin last year, but his runner-up spot set him on his way to winning the European Tour's coveted Race to Dubai title in a breakthrough season. On the PGA Tour he ranks in at 13th for Driving Accuracy Percentage, 6th in Strokes Gained (SG): Off-The-Tee and overtook Dustin to go 2nd in SG: Tee-To-Green after last week's fourth-placed finished at the Honda Classic. On this course, that's HUGE. Watch out for Tommy.

Of course we can't overlook America's elite (as much as I'd like to) when you have the likes of Dustin Johnson, Justin Thomas and Jordan Spieth lining up. JT is fresh off a win in the Honda Classic, but he may not be the only one benefitting from that victory. His best buddy Spieth is, simply put, a competitor. The win took JT above Spieth in the Official World Golf Rankings (OWGR) and raised the stakes for both 24-year-olds seeking Hall of Fame status in Tiger Woods-esque fashion. 

I haven't seen a tournament this hard to predict in a long, long time. As much as (and I know I say this every week, but here goes) I hate tipping the favourite, I can't bring myself to look past the favourite in Dustin Johnson. He's just too good. That said, if you're looking for better odds than Dustin's feeble 6/1, then Tommy Fleetwood is 16/1, in red-hot form and suits the course down to a tee... literally. This still makes him fourth-favourite behind Dustin, JT, Spieth & Rahm, and I wouldn't be convinced to part with my money for any of them at 11/1 and below- no matter how good they are. Justin Rose and Alex Noren are 22/1 and 25/1 respectively; great prices for two real dangermen, and Rose's 11 top-tens in his last 12 tournaments make the Englishman my each-way tip.

So there it is. Call me patriotic but I'm putting my faith in Fleetwood and Rose this week.

Written by Joe Carabini

joe.carabini@foremostgolf.com