Man About Golf

AUGUSTA, Ga. -The 98 players who have qualified and are expected to compete in the 74th Masters, to be played April 8-11 at Augusta National Golf Club (players listed in only one category). A player can still qualify by winning the Houston Open:

Masters champions: Angel Cabrera, Trevor Immelman, Zach Johnson, Phil Mickelson, Tiger Woods, Mike Weir, Vijay Singh, Mark O'Meara, Ben Crenshaw, Bernhard Langer, Fred Couples, Ian Woosnam, Sandy Lyle, Larry Mize, Craig Stadler, Tom Watson, Raymond Floyd.

U.S. Open champions (five years): Lucas Glover, Geoff Ogilvy, Michael Campbell.

British Open champions (five years): Stewart Cink, Padraig Harrington.

PGA champions (five years): Y.E. Yang.

Players Championship (three years): Henrik Stenson, Sergio Garcia.

U.S. Amateur champion and runner-up: a-Byeong-Hun An, a-Ben Martin.

British Amateur champion: a-Matteo Manassero.

U.S. Amateur Public Links champion: a-Brad Benjamin.

U.S. Mid-Amateur champion: a-Nathan Smith.

Asian Amateur champion: a-Chang-won Han

Top 16 players and ties from 2009 Masters: Chad Campbell, Kenny Perry, Shingo Katayama, John Merrick, Steve Flesch, Steve Stricker, Hunter Mahan, Sean O'Hair, Jim Furyk, Camilo Villegas, Tim Clark, Todd Hamilton.

Top eight players and ties from 2009 U.S. Open: David Duval, Ricky Barnes, Ross Fisher, Soren Hansen.

Top four players and ties from 2009 British Open: Chris Wood, Lee Westwood.

Top four players and ties from 2009 PGA Championship: Rory McIlroy.

Top 30 players from the 2009 PGA Tour money list: Retief Goosen, Nick Watney, Brian Gay, David Toms, Dustin Johnson, Rory Sabbatini, Kevin Na, Paul Casey, Jerry Kelly, Matt Kuchar, Ian Poulter, John Senden, John Rollins, Justin Leonard.

Winners of PGA Tour events that award full FedEx Cup points since the 2009 Masters: Nathan Green, Ryan Moore, Heath Slocum, Ryan Palmer, Bill Haas, Ben Crane, Ernie Els.

The field from the 2009 Tour Championship: Scott Verplank, Jason Dufner, Marc Leishman, Steve Marino, Luke Donald.

Top 50 players from the final 2009 world ranking: Martin Kaymer, Robert Allenby, Anthony Kim, Robert Karlsson, Ryo Ishikawa, Yuta Ikeda, Adam Scott, Soren Kjeldsen, Francesco Molinari, Graeme McDowell, Anders Hansen, Oliver Wilson, Simon Dyson, Michael Sim, Edoardo Molinari, Miguel Angel Jimenez, Ben Curtis.

Top 50 players from world ranking published a week before the 2010 Masters: Charl Schwartzel, Alvaro Quiros, Louis Oosthuizen, Thongchai Jaidee, K.J. Choi.

AUGUSTA, Ga. -A hole-by-hole look at Augusta National, site of the 74th Masters to be played April 8-11. Names of the holes in parentheses:

No. 1, 445 yards, par 4 (Tea Olive): This slight dogleg right plays uphill and has a deep bunker requiring a 317-yard carry off the tee. The bunker has a tongue in the left side, so anything that enters the front of the bunker might be blocked by the lip. A bunker is left of the green, which falls off sharply at the back and to the right.

Fame: Scott Verplank holed out from the fairway bunker with a 4-iron for eagle in 1987.

Shame: Olin Browne and Scott Simpson were the first players to make a quadruple bogey - on the same day in 1998.

No. 2, 575 yards, par 5 (Pink Dogwood): A dogleg left that can be reached in two by the big hitters. A fairway bunker on the right comes into play. A big drive kept down the left side shortens the hole, but leaves a downhill lie to a green guarded by two deep bunkers in the front. It is the only par 5 that has not yielded an albatross.

Fame: Phil Mickelson made a birdie like no other in 2003 - a drive so far left it went into a drainage ditch. He took a penalty drop, then hit driver off the pine straw to the front of the green and made a 90-foot putt.

Shame: David Duval hit into the ditch to the left, took two penalty shots before he escaped, and made a 10 in 2006.

No. 3, 350 yards, par 4 (Flowering Peach): One of the best short par-4s in golf, this hole that hasn't been changed in 28 years. Big hitters can drive near the green, but not many even try because of all the trouble surrounding the L-shaped green that slopes sharply from right to left. Most players hit iron off tee to stay short of four bunkers on the left side.

Fame: Jack Nicklaus was 58 when he chipped in for birdie in 1998 to get into contention, and receive a cheer so loud the ground shook.

Shame: Jeff Maggert was leading in the final round in 2003 until his shot from a fairway bunker caromed off the wall and hit him in the chest, a two-shot penalty. He made a triple bogey.

No. 4, 240 yards, par 3 (Flowering Crab Apple): This has become a long iron for big hitters, fairway metal for others. A deep bunker protects the right side of the green, with another bunker to the left. Club selection remains crucial because of the deceptive wind. The green slopes to the front. This hole features the only palm tree on the course.

Fame: Jeff Sluman in 1992 is the only player to make a hole-in-one on the longest par 3 at Augusta National.

Shame: Vijay Singh opened with a 67 in 2006 and birdied two of his first three holes of the second round until hitting 6-iron over the green and into the bushes to make double bogey. He wound up with a 74.

No. 5, 455 yards, par 4 (Magnolia): New tee box this year offers an option to play slightly shorter. An uphill, slight dogleg to the left with two very deep bunkers guarding the left side some 300 yards from the tee. The green slopes severely from back to front, and a small bunker catches anything long. If an approach is long and misses the bunker, it could roll down the slope and into the trees.

Fame: Jack Nicklaus holed out from the fairway for eagle in 1995 - in the first round and in the third round.

Shame: Defending champion Cary Middlecoff had a four-putt double bogey in the final round in 1956 and wound up with a 77 to finish two shots behind Jack Burke Jr.

No. 6, 180 yards, par 3 (Juniper): An elevated tee to a large green with three tiers, with significant slopes marking the three levels. Getting close to the hole is a challenge. The easiest pin might be front left. The hole has not been changed since 1975.

Fame: Billy Joe Patton made a hole-in-one in the final round in 1954 as he tried to become the first amateur to win the Masters. He finished one shot out of a playoff between Ben Hogan and Sam Snead.

Shame: Jose Maria Olazabal had two chips roll back to his feet and a third go over the green in the second round of 1991. He took a quadruple-bogey 7 and wound up one shot behind Ian Woosnam.

No. 7, 450 yards, par 4 (Pampas): This hole literally has come a long way, from 320 yards to 450 yards. The tee recently was extended by 40 yards, and some trees were trimmed slightly on the left side. The tee shot is through a chute of Georgia pines, played to the left-center of the fairway into a slight slope. The green is surrounded by five bunkers, the most around any green.

Fame: Ernie Els is the only player to make an eagle from the fairway in two tournaments - 1997 and 2003.

Shame: Defending champion Charles Coody, coming off an ace on the sixth hole, struggled to get out of the front bunker and took a triple-bogey 7 in the first round of 1972.

No. 8, 570 yards, par 5 (Yellow Jasmine): An accurate drive is important to avoid the fairway bunker on the right side. The hole is uphill and features trouble left of the green. There are no bunkers around the green, just severe mounding.

Fame: Bruce Devlin is the only player with an albatross, holing a 4-wood from 248 yards during the first round in 1967.

Shame: Tony Lema took double bogey in the opening round of 1963 and shot 74. He eventually finished one shot behind Jack Nicklaus.

No. 9, 460 yards, par 4 (Carolina Cherry): The tee shot should be aimed down the right side for a good angle into the green, which features two large bunkers to the left. Any approach that is short could spin some 25 yards back into the fairway.

Fame: Jack Nicklaus heard a cheer behind him in the final round in 1986 when he said loud enough for the gallery to hear, ``Let's make some noise of our own.'' He made his birdie putt, then shot 30 on the back nine to win.

Shame: Greg Norman went after the pin on Sunday and saw the ball spin down the hill back into the fairway, the start of his record collapse in 1996.

No. 10, 495 yards, par 4 (Camellia): A long hole that can play shorter if the drive catches the slope in the fairway. It is difficult to save par from the bunker right of the green. The putting surface slopes from right to left. It has played as the most difficult hole in Masters history.

Fame: Ben Crenshaw holed a 60-foot birdie putt in the final round on his way to victory in 1984.

Shame: Scott Hoch had a 3-foot putt to win the Masters in a playoff in 1989. He missed, and lost to Nick Faldo on the next hole.

No. 11, 505 yards, par 4 (White Dogwood): Amen Corner starts here. The tee recently was lengthened by 15 yards, but some pine trees have been removed on the right side, although the landing area is still tight. A big tee shot - and a straight one - is required to get to the crest of the hill. A pond guards the green to the left and a bunker is to the back right. The safe shot is to bail out short and to the right.

Fame: Larry Mize chipped in for birdie in a playoff in 1987 to beat Greg Norman.

Shame: Raymond Floyd pulled his approach into the water in a playoff in 1990 to lose to Nick Faldo.

No. 12, 155 yards, par 3 (Golden Bell): This is among the most famous par 3s in golf, and the shortest hole at Augusta National. Club selection can range from a 6-iron to a 9-iron, but it's difficult to gauge the wind. Rae's Creek is in front of the shallow green, with two bunkers behind it and one in front.

Fame: Fred Couples came up short, only for a blade of grass to hold up his ball on the slope. He chipped up to save par and wound up winning by one shot.

Shame: Tom Weiskopf hit 7-iron into Rae's Creek, then hit four shots with a sand wedge into the water in the opening round of 1980 to make a 13, the highest score ever on this hole.

No. 13, 510 yards, par 5 (Azalea): An accurate tee shot to the center of the fairway sets up players to go for the green. A tributary to Rae's Creek winds in front of the green, and four bunkers are behind the putting surface. From tee to green, there are about 1,600 azaleas. Tee box expanded this year for a few more options on placing tees.

Fame: Jeff Maggert became the only player in Masters history to make a 2 when he holed out a 3-iron from 220 yards in 1994.

Shame: Curtis Strange had a three-shot lead with six holes to play when he went for the green with a 4-wood, hit into Rae's Creek and wound up making bogey on his way to a back-nine collapse.

No. 14, 440 yards, par 4 (Chinese Fir): This is the only hole on the course without a bunker. Even if the drive avoids trees on both sides of the fairway, the green has severe contours that feed the ball to the right.

Fame: No other par 4 at the Masters has yielded more eagles. Dustin Johnson's in 2009 was the most recent.

Shame: Fred Couples had a 4-foot birdie putt to pull within one shot of Phil Mickelson in the final round of 2006. He three-putted for a bogey and tied for third.

No. 15, 530 yards, par 5 (Firethorn): A cluster of pines is starting to mature on the right side of the fairway, making it critical to be straight off the tee. The green can be reached in two with a good drive, but a pond guards the front and there is a bunker to the right. Even for those laying up, the third shot requires a precise wedge.

Fame: Gene Sarazen hit 4-wood from 235 yards into the hole for a 2 in 1935, the most famous albatross in golf.

Shame: Geoff Ogilvy was in contention late Saturday in 2007 when he put two balls in the water with a wedge and made a 9, sending him to an 81 in the third round.

No. 16, 170 yards, par 3 (Redbud): The hole is played entirely over water and eventually bends to the left. Two bunkers guard the right side, and the green slopes significantly from right to left. The Sunday pin typically is back and on the lower shelf, and pars from the top shelf that day are rare.

Fame: With a one-shot lead in the final round of 2005, Tiger Woods hit a pitch from behind the green that went up the ridge, made a U-turn and rolled back toward the hole and hung on the lip for two seconds before the ball took a final turn and dropped for birdie.

Shame: Billy Casper, playing the Masters a final time at age 73 in 2005, hit five balls into the water and made a 14. It was the highest score on any hole in the Masters. Casper declined to turn in his card and the tournament did not recognize his score of 106.

No. 17, 440 yards, par 4 (Nandina): The Eisenhower Tree to the left of the fairway is prominent at 210 yards from the tee, requiring another accurate tee shot. The green is protected by two bunkers in the front.

Fame: Jack Nicklaus holed a 12-foot putt, his final birdie in a back-nine 30 when he won the Masters in 1986. Nicklaus raised the putter in his left hand as it fell, which became his signature pose.

Shame: Stuart Appleby had a four-shot lead late in the third round of 2007 when he hit his tee shot so far left it went into a bunker on the seventh green. He hit into another bunker on the 17th, and three-putted for a triple bogey.

No. 18, 465 yards, par 4 (Holly): Now among the most demanding finishing holes in golf, this uphill dogleg right is protected off the tee by two deep bunkers at the left elbow - the only bunkers in play off the tee on the back nine (except for par 3s). Trees get in the way of a drive that strays to the right. A middle iron typically is required to a green that has a bunker in front and to the right.

Fame: Arnold Palmer hit 6-iron to 6 feet for a birdie and a one-shot victory in 1960.

Shame: Palmer walked up the 18th fairway accepting congratulations for another victory, then hit into the bunker and wound up with a double bogey to finish one shot behind Gary Player.

Facts and figures for the Masters:

Tournament: The 74th Masters

Dates: April 8-11

Site: Augusta National Golf Club

Length: 7,435 yards

Par: 36-36-72

Purse: To be determined ($7.5 million in 2009).

Field: 98 players (six amateurs).

Cut: Top 44 and ties, and anyone within 10 shots of the lead.

Defending champion: Angel Cabrera.

Last year: Cabrera became the first Argentine to win the Masters, closing with a 71 and winning on the second hole of a three-man playoff that included Kenny Perry and Chad Campbell. Perry, 48, had a two-shot lead with two holes to play and was on the verge of becoming golf's oldest major champion until he bogeyed the 17th and 18th. In the playoff, Cabrera hit a shot that struck a pine, but he managed to make par. Campbell was eliminated on the first extra hole (No. 18) with a bogey, and Cabrera won with a par on No. 10.

Return of Woods: Tiger Woods is playing for the first time since revelations that he had repeatedly cheated on his wife. When he tees off Thursday, it will have been 144 days since he last hit a competitive shot.

Words from Woods: ``The major championships have always been a special focus in my career and, as a professional, I think Augusta is where I need to be, even though it's been a while since I last played.''

On the tee: Jack Nicklaus and Arnold Palmer will hit the ceremonial first tee shot.

Key statistic: Tiger Woods has finished out of the top 20 at the Masters only once in his pro career.

Noteworthy: Anthony Kim and Ben Curtis are the only Americans out of 22 players who qualified through the world ranking.

Quoteworthy: ``I've never seen anybody that plays golf like Tiger Woods does. So the answer to that questions is yes. I believe he can be a factor.'' - Stewart Cink, when asked whether Woods could be a competitive factor at the Masters.

Television: Thursday-Friday, 4 p.m. to 7:30 p.m., ESPN. Saturday, 3:30 p.m. to 7 p.m., CBS Sports. Sunday, 2 p.m. to 7 p.m., CBS Sports.

Interactive: www.masters.org. One hour of coverage each day before the telecast. Live video of Amen Corner starting at 10:45 a.m. Thursday and Friday, 12:45 p.m. on Saturday, 11:30 a.m. on Sunday. Live video of the 15th and 16th holes starting at 11 a.m. Thursday and Friday, 1 p.m. on Saturday and noon on Sunday.

AUGUSTA, Ga. (AP) -Facts and figures for the Masters:

Tournament: The 74th Masters

Dates: April 8-11

Site: Augusta National Golf Club

Length: 7,435 yards

Par: 36-36-72

Purse: To be determined ($7.5 million in 2009).

Field: 98 players (six amateurs).

Cut: Top 44 and ties, and anyone within 10 shots of the lead.

Defending champion: Angel Cabrera.

Last year: Cabrera became the first Argentine to win the Masters, closing with a 71 and winning on the second hole of a three-man playoff that included Kenny Perry and Chad Campbell. Perry, 48, had a two-shot lead with two holes to play and was on the verge of becoming golf's oldest major champion until he bogeyed the 17th and 18th. In the playoff, Cabrera hit a shot that struck a pine, but he managed to make par. Campbell was eliminated on the first extra hole (No. 18) with a bogey, and Cabrera won with a par on No. 10.

Return of Woods: Tiger Woods is playing for the first time since revelations that he had repeatedly cheated on his wife. When he tees off Thursday, it will have been 144 days since he last hit a competitive shot.

Words from Woods: ``The major championships have always been a special focus in my career and, as a professional, I think Augusta is where I need to be, even though it's been a while since I last played.''

On the tee: Jack Nicklaus and Arnold Palmer will hit the ceremonial first tee shot.

Key statistic: Tiger Woods has finished out of the top 20 at the Masters only once in his pro career.

Noteworthy: Anthony Kim and Ben Curtis are the only Americans out of 22 players who qualified through the world ranking.

Quoteworthy: ``I've never seen anybody that plays golf like Tiger Woods does. So the answer to that questions is yes. I believe he can be a factor.'' - Stewart Cink, when asked whether Woods could be a competitive factor at the Masters.

Television: Thursday-Friday, 4 p.m. to 7:30 p.m., ESPN. Saturday, 3:30 p.m. to 7 p.m., CBS Sports. Sunday, 2 p.m. to 7 p.m., CBS Sports.

Interactive: www.master.com. One hour of coverage each day before the telecast. Live video of Amen Corner starting at 10:45 a.m. Thursday and Friday, 12:45 p.m. on Saturday, 11:30 a.m. on Sunday. Live video of the 15th and 16th holes starting at 11 a.m. Thursday and Friday, 1 p.m. on Saturday and noon on Sunday.