Tiger Woods' legendary ex-coach reveals Masters dark horse: "He is ready"

Tiger Woods' ex-coach Butch Harmon says England's Tommy Fleetwood is his 'dark horse' to win the 2024 Masters. 

Despite being a European Ryder Cup star with seven victories worldwide, the 33-year-old is yet to register a PGA Tour win. 

Not that he hasn't been close and, since 2022 it is fair to say his performances in the majors have been trending upwards.

Fleetwood slipping on the green jacket at Augusta National would undoubtedly be a hugely popular Masters outcome. 

Speaking to GolfMagic before the first major of the year, Harmon contended Fleetwood's game is a perfect fit given his ability to hit the ball right-to-left on demand. 

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"I'll pick one of your guys, Tommy Fleetwood," Harmon said. 

He continued: "I think he's ready to break out and win a major. He's got a great game for Augusta. 

"He is a right to left player. In our last two years together, he's improved every aspect of his game. 

"He's a very consistent player [and] he handles the situation well when he gets in there. 

"He had a good chance to win two majors last year, he was right there in both the Opens. 

"And he lost the Canadian Open to a guy who holed a 72-footer [Nick Taylor], so he's due a break himself.

"He's playing with a lot of confidence and I'm someone who thinks Tommy Fleetwood is not just one of the best golfers in the world but also one of the nicest guys in the world. 

"So I hope he can get it done."

Fleetwood's form in 2024 has been somewhat mixed. 

His only top-10 finish came at the Genesis Invitational at Riviera Country Club and he has missed one cut at Bay Hill. 

The Englishman began his year with a bang by pipping Rory McIlroy at the inaugural Dubai Invitational. 

Despite being Harmon's firm dark horse, the legendary golf coach suggested there are a few others who could challenge the red-hot favourites Scottie Scheffler and Jon Rahm. 

Harmon, 80, said: "I think Wyndham Clark obviously, the defending US Open champion is playing very well. 

"Xander Schauffele is playing very well. I think Viktor Hovland is the one who has surprised. 

"He is going through some swing changes now. Viktor is rated what, six, in the world? 

"[He is] one of the most consistent players out there but he hasn’t played to his potential. 

"So it will be interesting to see what he does. All the guys you look at who are up there. 

"Scottie Scheffler has obviously played better than anybody. Every time he tees it up, he looks like he is going to win. 

"He is on a mini Tiger Woods run at the moment as far as his consistency. 

"He understands Augusta, he has done it before there so that is going to be a great guy to look at.

"I think we are all going to look at Jon Rahm just because we haven't seen him on the PGA Tour.

"He has gone to LIV, nobody knows how he is doing."

Harmon continued: "You look at some of the other major champions: Brian Harman, his game, I would say, isn’t suited for Augusta because he is not one of the longest hitters although that doesn’t mean he can’t win because he has a great short
game. 

"[Ludvig] Aberg, this young man has a great golf swing and great potential so we will see how he does in this major. 

"And then you have Matt Fitzpatrick who has played well this year. [He is] another guy who I think will have a good chance there. I

"If you look at the top [players], Scottie Scheffler, Rory McIlroy and Jon Rahm are going to be the ones everyone talks about other than Tiger Woods. 

"So I think there are a lot of guys who are going to have a chance. It is what makes the first Major of the year so exciting.

 "We don’t know what is going to happen until we get to watch it on Sky and then we will all find out together."

The Masters will be available on Sky Sports Golf and via a NOW subscription from 11th – 14th April, and you can follow all the latest news on Sky Sports social and digital channels throughout the week.

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