Associated Press
 Wednesday, April 4
AUGUSTA, Ga. -- A win to celebrate or not?

 
  Toms

Helped by a hole-in-one on the third hole, David Toms shot 5-under par Wednesday to win the traditional Masters par-3 tournament.

Of course, winning this event isn't always a good thing. No winner of the par-3 tournament has ever gone on to wear the green jacket.

Toms beat Loren Roberts by one stroke. A group of five -- Franklin Langham, David Duval, Jim Furyk, Greg Norman and Ben Crenshaw -- finished at 3-under in the nine-hole event.

Darren Clarke, Scott Verplank and Chris Perry also had holes-in-one.

Record weekend
The weather is supposed to be good, and a few of golf's most impressive records have already fallen this season, leading to some speculation that Tiger Woods' course-record 18-under-par 270 could fall this year.

 
  Calcavecchia

Not so fast, says Mark Calcavecchia, who set the PGA Tour record for a 72-hole tournament earlier this year, shooting 28-under 256 at Phoenix.

"This course is so penal," Calcavecchia said. "The difference between a good shot and a bad shot is significant. That's why I don't think anyone goes low here very often."

Joe Durant also set a record this year for a five-round tournament, shooting 324 at the Bob Hope Chrysler Classic. He's not as pessimistic as Calcavecchia.

"I think it's realistic any week," Durant said. "If a guy gets a hot hand and feels good, strikes the ball well, you can't ever say it can't happen. The way guys play nowadays, it wouldn't surprise me at all. It might surprise some people, but it wouldn't surprise the players."

Advice for Singh
Along with Jack Nicklaus, Nick Faldo is the only player to win back-to-back Masters, in 1989-90. He said a change in mindset in the weeks leading up to the 1990 tournament made the difference.

 
  Faldo

"I was trying to defend for 11 months, then the last month before it, I said, 'Hell no, I'm going to go and win,' " Faldo said. "I'm not trying to defend, I'm going to go there, it's a brand new Masters, I'm going to go and win it."

He wound up in a tie with Raymond Floyd, and beat him in a two-hole playoff.

"I kept telling myself, 'I can't give the jacket to Ray,' " Faldo said. "It didn't feel right. Getting into the playoff made me want to hold onto it even more."

Traditional trio
For the second straight year, Nicklaus is paired in the first two rounds with Arnold Palmer and Gary Player. That might be a golf fan's delight, but the Golden Bear hopes it doesn't become a Masters tradition.

 
  Nicklaus

"I like playing with them, but I like to see some of the younger kids play, too," Nicklaus said. "This kind of takes us out of the loop. And you have to look at it from the other perspective. What about young kids who would like to play with us?"

Nicklaus said one of his biggest thrills came at the PGA Championship he won in 1971, when he played with Gene Sarazen, who was in his late 60s.

"Do I mind playing it like this? No," Nicklaus said. "That's not the issue. It's an issue of tradition of the tournament. Rather than have it become a tradition of the tournament, it would be nice to play with young kids."

No Daly
John Daly wrote Augusta National Golf Club a letter earlier this year, asking for a spot in The Masters.

 
  Daly

His five-year exemption for winning the British Open in 1995 expired last year. He sought an extension because he missed the 1997 tournament while he was in an alcohol rehabilitation center and hoped to have that year restored.

Request denied.

"It's tough," he said last week. "I haven't played good enough to be in the tournament. It kind of makes me feel the two majors that I did win don't seem to mean anything to committees and stuff anymore. That hurts my ego a little bit."

Daly also won the PGA Championship in 1991.

Divots
  • The Masters will show the starting ceremony live on its Web site at 8 a.m. ET Thursday. Sam Snead, 88, and Byron Nelson, 89, will hit balls off the first tee. Other Internet firsts: the trophy presentation, the interview with the champion, and live play-by-play broadcast.

  • Crenshaw was the last first-round leader to win The Masters. He did that in 1984. Last year's first-round leader, Dennis Paulson, finished 14th.




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