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It's finally here; golf's first major championship. Every year the masses flock to Augusta National to take part in a somewhat religious experience as they cascade through the gates on Washington Road to witness one of the greateast spectacles in all of sport. Here are some interesting things of note to watch for as this year's tournament begins. 
1. Tiger Woods
- Talk of a possible Grand Slam is still swirling at Augusta National Golf Club this week but has cooled off a bit since Geoff Ogilvy ended Tiger's winning streak at Doral a few weeks ago. In order for Tiger to have at a winning the Grand Slam, he'll have to win this week. Along with a fifth green jacket, Tiger has a chance to make some more history by week's end. Woods is looking to capture a major championship for the fourth consecutive season. The only players to accomplish that feat are Jack Nicklaus, Tom Watson and himself (99-02). A victory would also give Woods his 13th major. Nicklaus won his 14th major in his 56th major start at the 1975 PGA Championship at the age of 35 years, 6 months and 20 days; Woods will be making his 45th major start and will be 32 years, three months and 14 days old when the tournament concludes on Sunday.
2. Gary Player breaks Arnold Palmer's record with his 51st Masters appearance
- The ageless Gary Player at 72 years young, will set a tournament participation mark this morning when he tees off at Augusta National Golf Club for the 51st time, breaking a record he shares with Arnold Palmer. He's paired with Miguel Angel Jimenez and Clemson product D.J. Trahan. Player is just happy to still be competing and hopes to impact the younger generation. "If I can influence some young guys to keep in shape, that's one of my great dreams in my life. Arnold has a hospital, Jack has a hospital, we all try to do something for the game and if I can influence a young man to stay in shape, I've done something."
3. Fred Couples cut streak
- Fred Couples has played the Masters 23 times. He has made the cut 23 times, a feat that ties him with Gary Player for most consecutive weekend appearances. He'll be trying to take sole ownership of that record this week. Couples carded one of four holes in one at Wednesday's par-3 contest.
4. Par 3 Jinx
- Rory Sabbatini won the Masters par-3 contest on Wednesday in Augusta, Ga., finishing at five under par. No player has gone on to win the Masters in the same year as winning the par-3 event, which has been held since 1960 on Augusta National Golf Club's adjacent nine-hole, 1,060 golf course.
"You can't break the curse unless you've won the par 3 contest to start with," Sabbatini said after the match. I'm not a very superstitious person. I don't believe in curses.
5. The Weather
- Last year the weather conditions helped the course hold the field in check, as Zach Johnson shot a 289 to win. His 1-over-par 289 last year was the third time in the 71 Masters that over par won the tournament. In the days before last year's tournament the sun was shining and the heat helped to dry out the course. Then the winds picked up and it got quite cold, making for some difficult course conditions. It looks like early round temperatures will be in the 80s before a bit of a chill sets in on Sunday. In the practice rounds the course has been playing long because of heavy rains that soaked the Augusta area over the weekend, as players resorted to hitting long irons into the greens on many of par 4's.
6. Zach's chances at repeating
- The normal guy from Iowa is back but many experts aren't giving him much of a shot at repeating. Last year Johnson won his first green jacket with the strategy of not going for any of the par 5s through any of the four tournament days. Johnson said his strategy for this year certainly isn't preordained. "I talked about it with my caddie and my instructor. It's one of those situations where we are not going to base it -- it's going to be a day-to-day thing, a condition-based thing."
7. ESPN Broadcast
- Televising the Masters is a privilege and this year that honors is being shared by newcomer ESPN and longtime partner of the Augusta National Golf Club, CBS. ESPN's Mike Tirico may have the most to gain as he leads ESPN's early round telecasts along with Ian Baker-Finch and Andy North. Tirico has a hard act to follow if he compares himself with Jim Nantz of CBS Sports, who has called the weekend action for the better part of three decades.
8. Aussies poised for historic victory
- Geoff Ogilvy may be the hottest player in the game, peaking at the right time and hoping to end his country's drought at the year's first major championship. Adam Scott, who shot a blistering 9-under 63 in the first round of last week's Shell Houston Open is close behind. These two Aussies, along with the likes of young Aaron Baddeley, lead the way as the Land Down Under hopes to change its 0 for all-time record at the Masters. Six times Australians have finished runner-up in the event; Jim Ferrier, Bruce Crampton, Jack Newton and Greg Norman, who did so three times.
9. Bobby Jones
- Lifetime amateur golfer Trip Kuehne, who is 35 years old, says he will retire from competitive golf after his appearance in the Masters. Kuehne is back after a 13 absence from Augusta National after earning a spot with a win at the 2007 U.S. Mid-Amateur Championship. Remember it was Kuehne who lost the finals of the 1994 U.S. Amateur Championship to a young Tiger Woods. Wouldn't it be great if the two were paired together again on Sunday.
10. Who will win?
- The smart money has to be on Tiger Woods this week. My guess is that Tiger starts slow but then erupts in rounds two and three on his way to his fifth green jacket. Hey, I bet against Tiger once this year at the World Golf Championships Accenture Match Play and look how well that pick turned out. With the golf course playing longer because of the rainfall over the weekend, the course could be even more to Tiger's liking than usual.
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