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The 2022 Masters tees off Thursday, April 7 at Augusta National Golf Club and, as usual, the field is loaded with veterans, up-and-coming stars and former champions. Reigning champion Hideki Matsuyama, a two-time winner this season, will try to defend his title against a loaded 2022 Masters field. World No. 1 Jon Rahm, four-time major champions Brooks Koepka and Rory McIlroy, and 2021 runner-up Will Zalatoris are among the many PGA Tour stars trying to earn a green jacket of their own at the Masters 2022.
Rahm is the 8-1 favorite in the latest 2022 Masters odds from Caesars Sportsbook as he tries to add a second major to his 2021 U.S. Open title. He will battle other multiple major champions like Jordan Spieth (12-1), Collin Morikawa (12-1) and Dustin Johnson (16-1). Before you make any 2022 Masters picks or PGA Tour predictions, you need to see what proven golf insider Sal Johnson has to say, considering his history at the Masters.
The esteemed golf insider has been around the game for many years and knows what it takes to win on the PGA Tour. He also knows the keys at Augusta National and when a player’s momentum can carry him to greatness.
Johnson has nailed two of the past three winners of the Masters, including Tiger Woods’ unlikely victory in 2019 for his most recent major title. He also called Johnson’s 2020 win when he shot a tournament-record 20-under 268 to win by five strokes.
“His tee-to-green game is almost as sharp as in his prime,” Johnson said of Woods before the 2019 event. “This will be the reason for him winning. It would be great for the game, him winning another Masters.” Woods wasn’t far removed from back surgery and hadn’t won a major in more than 10 years, but he rallied from a two-shot deficit in the final round to win by one. It was his fifth Masters title and his 15th major championship.
Now, Johnson, the first producer of “Inside the PGA Tour” and longtime ABC Sports golf producer who worked with Jack Nicklaus and Arnold Palmer, has released his highly confident 2022 Masters picks. The picks from the founder of GOLFstats.com, the world’s top golf statistics database, will definitely surprise you. You can see them here.
One shocking choice from Johnson: The expert is fading Collin Morikawa, even though he’s in the mix of top favorites. The world’s No. 2 golfer doesn’t have a strong track record at Augusta, tying for 18th last year and finishing 44th in 2020. His tee-to-green game is almost unmatched, but his putting has been inconsistent. He gets off the green in one putt less than 41% of the time (78th on tour) and is 112th inside 10 feet (88%).
Meanwhile, the expert knows Jordan Spieth won the Masters in 2015 and has five top-three finishes in eight runs at Augusta. He was 46th in November 2020 amid the uncertainty of the COVID-19 pandemic, but he tied for third last April. His game fits the course like few others.
Johnson also expects Rory McIlory to rebound from his missed cut at Augusta last April, a result that spurred a major reevaluation of his game. The Northern Irishman said he got caught up in trying to match Bryson DeChambeau’s bomb-and-gouge success, but scrapped that immediately and won the Wells Fargo a month later. McIlroy 33rd at the Players Championship, but has been in the top 18 in his other four tour events this season, including a victory at the CJ Cup in October. He also has three top-12 finishes on the European tour since that win.
Johnson also is backing a massive long shot at Augusta who comes in at almost 100-1. “He seems like a strange choice, but he isn’t,” Johnson says of this golfer, who is one of the best short-range putters on tour. You can only see who it is at SportsLine.
Who wins the 2022 Masters at Augusta National? Where do Spieth and McIlroy finish? And which epic long shot is a must-back? Visit SportsLine now to see Sal Johnson’s full leaderboard, picks and analysis for the 2022 Masters, all from the insider who has nailed the winner two of the last three years.
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