Luke Donald believes he has the game to master Augusta National ahead of the first Major Championship of 2012.
Donald, who will this year be making his eighth appearance at the Masters Tournament, appeared in confident mood and admitted to feeling positive about his chances of claiming a maiden Major Championship victory in Georgia this week.
The 34 year old has placed in the top ten on three occasions in his Masters career, his best performance coming with a tied third finish in his debut appearance in 2005, while the Englishman was left to rue a costly double bogey after finding Rae’s Creek on the infamous 12th – the centrepiece of ‘Amen Corner’ – in last year’s staging, as he finished four shots shy of eventual winner, South Africa’s Charl Schwartzel, in a share of fourth.
But having assembled what was undoubtedly the finest year of his professional life in 2011, finishing atop both The Race to Dubai and the US PGA Tour’s money list, the World Number One has his eyes firmly set on securing a coveted Green Jacket and what would surely be the pinnacle of his 12 career victories, and is insistent he has the game to match the task ahead.
“It's great to be here, I feel very good about this course,” Donald said. “I think having a good short game is important around here, having good feel on the greens, and trying to be the guy who putts the best, as he will always have a chance. Obviously that’s been a good strength of mine the last few years.”
And having accrued a wealth of experience in his septuplet of previous Masters appearances, Donald acknowledges success at Augusta comes often as a result of a steep learning curve and considers himself well-placed to take on the Georgian diamond, and the world’s best, with a sense of comfort and a smile on his face.
“Obviously my first year here I finished third which was mostly due to just being so excited to be here and having that great kind of excited feeling about everything that was going around. I was in a good mood, I suppose, and that obviously goes a long way with golf.
“I do feel like I've learned most of the things about the golf course by now and every time you come back you learn a little more. The couple of days I practiced last week, there were a few things that I figured out, a few different shots to practice and prepare for. But I certainly I feel like I know the course pretty well now.”
Having had some of the spotlight taken off him with the re-emergence of former World Number One Tiger Woods and the man who briefly usurped him as top ranked player in the world, Rory McIlroy, Donald undoubtedly represents a serious threat to the 97-man field at Augusta this week and has a steely determination in his eyes and a quiet confidence that he is now ready to get the job done.
“In terms of confidence, I feel like a different player,” he reflected. “I feel every year I'm learning more about my swing, learning more about my misses, my mistakes, how to deal with it, how to get myself around the golf course in a better way.
“Having won five times in the last 14 months, you only gain a lot of confidence from that. I've been able to win tournaments without playing my best golf, and I think Majors are a similar deal. I think it goes back to thinking I need to do more than I actually do.
“A lot of people put too much pressure on themselves, and you go out there and you press a little bit too hard, and suddenly you're a few shots back and trying to play catch‑up. Obviously knowing that just playing my game is good enough is a good thought to have for me.”
Donald also revealed in his preview press conference that he would be skipping his defence of the par three contest title he claimed last year, not – as might be expected – in an attempt to avoid the curse that has blighted all previous winners’ attempts to claim the main prize come Sunday afternoon, but merely in an attempt to focus his preparation.
He said: “Last year I actually had a very focused goal of trying to win both of them, and it was something that I wanted to do; something that was different, to try and defy convention I suppose. And I almost did it. I had a good chance at winning both but this year I'm just going to concentrate on the main one.
“As fun as it is, I’m not sure playing on greens that are not quite the same the afternoon before the first round seems the best preparation for me.”
