Bubba Watson might just win this whole doggone Masters
AUGUSTA, Ga. — Because everyone thinks he's a deep-fried country boy — his name's Bubba! he bought the Dukes of Hazzard's General Lee car! — it's easy to forget that the dude is dead serious about his golf game, and is hands down one of the best players on the planet.
Phil Mickelson's charge and Peter Hanson's improbable run may dominate the headlines going into Sunday's play, but Bubba sits just three strokes back of the lead, and he'll tee off in the second-to-last group at Augusta. Not a bad place to be, but Watson knows he can't be content with what he's got.
"The other guys have been playing so good, and they are going to keep playing good," he noted after his round. "You can't expect them to back up. You have got to expect them to keep going forward. So you've got to shoot a low number." He pinpointed that number in the 5- to 6-under range. It's doable, but it won't be easy ... and it shouldn't be.
[ Also: Dan Wetzel: Phil Mickelson's performance on Saturday saves the Masters from mediocrity ]
Then again, there are now priorities other than golf. Watson and his wife are new parents of an adopted infant, and he told the media that "I can't wait to whenever you get done talking to me to go back there and look at him. My wife sends me pictures of him and what he's doing." Pause. "He's not doing much. He's just laying there."
Still, Watson allowed that this first major after the arrival of his son would be a special one indeed. "It will be special to win it any time," he said, "but, yeah, especially for my son."
He's got his chance.
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