Columnist Peter Benton: Chances are Singh, Donald or Woods will win the Masters

Peter Benton

Wednesday, April 6, 2005 | 9:25 a.m.

Peter Benton's golf column appears Wednesday.

As every avid golfer is aware, the Masters, the first major PGA event of the year, is upon us, and you can guarantee that every Tom, Dick and Harry have already sorted out who he thinks will come away with the fabled green jacket.

Last year, fan favorite Phil Mickelson finally prevailed after 43 attempts in major championships, winning without all that stubborn aggression he foolhardily used to display and vowed never to alter. It took many years but he eventually realized that course management -- not hitting from his heels when behind every shrub and tree -- was the ultimate answer in achieving his long-sought dream.

However, this year's event is a brand new ball game and at this juncture just about any one of the ultra-talented participants has a shot at winning.

The consensus at the recently contested TPC Players Championship touted it would come down to the so-called "Fab Four" -- Mickelson, Vijay Singh, Tiger Woods and Ernie Els -- as to who would win, but as we all know now, that was definitely not the case. Respectively they finished T40, T12, T53 and Els in a tie for 17th.

The Masters, though, is an entirely different event and venue, and apart from a few exceptions, the cream invariably rises to the top here, and because of that my selections are as follows: