Fashionable Rickie Fowler soon might be adding green jacket to wardrobe

The Review-Journal has provided golf handicapper Wes Reynolds (@WesReynolds1) with a mythical $200 bankroll to play the futures board at the Westgate sports book for the Masters.

$40 each on Rickie Fowler, Hideki Matsuyama and Phil Mickelson at 20-1:

We start off with two top-10 ranked players who sit at or near the top of the “best player to never win a major list.”

Fowler, No. 8 in the world, is coming off a top-3 finish at the Shell Houston Open last week. The event in Houston might prove to be a fairly ideal test for Augusta, as it was played in rain-softened conditions and pretournament rain is expected down Magnolia Lane. Fowler also comes to Augusta with a win six weeks ago at the Honda Classic and has rediscovered the putting that led to top-five finishes in all four majors in 2014. Ranked fourth on the PGA Tour in shots gained tee-to-green, third in scrambling and first in scoring average, Fowler has produced all season around the green, and green very well could be his color come Sunday.

Matsuyama, No. 4 in the world, seems to be the forgotten man coming into this week. Arguably the best player in the world from October through January, he notched three wins and two second-place finishes in eight starts. After his lone missed cut of the season in Los Angeles, he had nondescript finishes of 25th, 45th and 51st entering this week. There are other players in much better form, but few have had shots to win this event the past two years as Matsuyama did in finishing seventh in 2015 and fifth in 2014. The past five Masters champions ranked seventh or better in the category of strokes gained tee-to-green. The six players that meet said criteria this week are tournament favorite Dustin Johnson, Jon Rahm, Sergio Garcia, Justin Thomas, Fowler and Matsuyama.

Next we go back to a man trying to turn back the clock at age 46 and win one final major at Augusta. That sounds familiar doesn’t it? Only this time it isn’t the Golden Bear, but three-time Masters winner Phil Mickelson. Lefty has not won or been in close contention to win this season, but he is 8-for-8 in made cuts and has quietly played solid golf. He ranks in the top 10 in putting, strokes gained around the green, and birdie frequency and eagle frequency. He is what he is. He’ll drive the ball all over the place, hit everything except the lottery, but find a way to stay in contention. No player in the field knows this course better than Mickelson, who will make his 25th start Thursday at Augusta National.

$20 each on Paul Casey (40-1) and Louis Oosthuizen (50-1):

Fellow Englishman Justin Rose (20-1) has the potential to be a contender come Sunday, but I’ll go down the board a bit with Paul Casey. Casey has contended the past two years, finishing fourth and sixth. In fact, he has shot in the 60s in five of his past eight rounds at Augusta. Casey’s high ball flight and being a right-to-left player off the tee fits perfectly here.

Oosthuizen had the green jacket in his grasp five years ago before succumbing to Bubba Watson in a playoff. The South African doesn’t have a win this season but has two top-five finishes.

$10 each on Marc Leishman, Daniel Berger and Brooks Koepka at 60-1:

Leishman is fresh off the biggest win of his career last month at the Arnold Palmer Invitational, holding off Rory McIlroy. The Aussie has only one made cut here in four tries, but it was a fourth-place finish in 2013. He’s a different player after contending in a couple of majors and beating world-class competition in Orlando a few weeks ago.

Berger is another one who comes into Augusta off a good outing in Houston, where he finished fifth. He ranks in the top 25 in numerous categories around the green.

Koepka is coming off his best finish of the year in making the knockout round of the WGC-Dell Match Play. With some windy conditions expected, it is important to note that Koepka started his professional career on the European Tour and is used to adverse weather.

$5 each on Bill Haas (80-1) and Soren Kjeldsen (150-1).